PCWA report: Water demand up sharply
by Sentinel Staff
Consumer demand for the Placer County Water Agency’s No. 1 product -- water -- is up 12 percent this year, which happens to be the PCWA’s second highest water-use year on record.
In a report to the PCWA’s governing board last week, Mike Nichol, the agency’s field services chief, attributed the increased use of water two factors:
(1) the county’s non-stop population growth, and
(2) high water usage in hot weather.
In addition to accepting Nichol’s report, the agency board:
- Agreed to cooperate with PG&E and the Nevada Irrigation
District on studies of potential water supply benefits of increased
storage at Fordyce and Rock Creek reservoirs and a full-flow bypass at
the Wise Powerhouse in Ophir. PCWA estimates is share of the $107,000
cost will be $47,000.
- Heard another report on the status of the American River pump
station/river restoration below Auburn, a project several years behind
its initial schedule. The $51 million project’s latest estimated
completion date is March of next year.
- Approved a contract with the Foresthill Public Utility District
that provides the PUD with a $10,000 financial assistance grant in
support of a water supply evaluation project.
- Accepted a matching $20,000 grant from the U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation to continue the PCWA’s washing machine rebate program.
Rebates of $150 are offered when old washers are replaced with new
high-efficiency models.
The agency board will meet again next Thursday, July 19, starting at 2
p.m., in the PCWA Business Center on Ferguson Road in East Auburn. Call
(530) 823-4850 after 9 a.m. on weekdays for more information.
In water news from the nearby Nevada Irrigation District, NID officials
reported that the 2006-07 rainfall year brought only 70 percent of
average precipitation to the district’s mountain watershed.
The 2006-07 year ended as the 22nd driest in 118 years of precipitation
records for NID’s Bowman Reservoir, where only 48.74 inches fell.
Bowman’s average annual precipitation is nearly 70 inches.
Despite the dry year, NID water storage is good, the officials said.
As of June 30, NID’s 10 major reservoirs were holding nearly 220,000
acre-feet of water, which equals 99 percent of average storage for this
time of year.
Discuss this article on the forums. (0 posts)
 |
Subscribe to this comment's feed