Reclamation awards $7.5 million for communities to prepare and respond to drought

The Bureau of Reclamation announced this week that it has selected 12 projects in the states of California, New Mexico and Utah to receive $7.5 million in drought resiliency grants as part of the WaterSMART Drought Response Program.

“Communities throughout the West need to be taking steps to prepare and build drought resiliency,” Reclamation Commissioner Brenda Burman said. “The projects being funded will allow communities to help themselves with locally driven projects to prepare for drought.”

Drought resiliency helps communities increase the reliability of their water supplies, improve water management and provide benefits to fish, wildlife and the environment. The 12 projects will leverage $7.5 million in WaterSMART funding with more than $65 million in non-federal funding. The communities selected in California are:

California

• City of Chino ($750,000)
• City of Clovis ($126,652)
• City of Santa Ana ($750,000)
• Inland Empire Utilities Agency, Chino ($750,000)
• Long Beach Water Department ($750,000)
• North Kern Water Storage District, Bakersfield ($750,000)
• Rancho California Water District, Temecula ($750,000)
• Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage District, Bakersfield ($750,000)
• Stanislaus Regional Water Authority, Turlock ($750,000)

To learn more about the projects selected, please visit Reclamation’s drought website at https://www.usbr.gov/drought.