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The Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD) has been awarded the prestigious Gold Award for Exceptional Utility Performance from the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) at AMWA’s 2016 Executive Management Conference in Scottsdale, Ariz. CVWD is one of only five agencies nationwide that met all of the rigorous requirements in order to receive the 2016 AMWA award. CVWD’s Assistant General Manager Robert Cheng accepted the award on behalf of the district.
AMWA awards spotlight the impressive advances and substantial achievements of public drinking water utilities that are leading the nation in their efforts toward sustainability through innovative management practices, executive leadership and employee engagement,” said AMWA President Scott Potter, Director of Nashville Metro Water Services. “Communities count on their drinking water systems for reliable and adequate supplies of clean, safe water, and those served by AMWA’s 2016 award winners can take pride in their outstanding accomplishments.”
AMWA presents its awards to water agencies providing domestic water/sanitation services to their that public agencies that have demonstrated they are using what are known as the Attributes of Effective Utility Management. Those attributes are: product quality, customer satisfaction, employee and leadership development, operational optimization, financial viability, infrastructure stability, operational resiliency, community sustainability, water resource adequacy and stakeholder understanding and support.
CVWD has used a strategic planning process for the past three years to improve operations and processes related to the AMWA’s attributes. Strategic planning objectives have ranged from recruiting and retaining quality employees, enacting more aggressive water conservation programs, completing a comprehensive asset management audit and improving customer service.
As a public agency, the Coachella Valley Water District is governed by a five-member board of directors. The district provides domestic and irrigation water, agricultural drainage, wastewater treatment and reclamation services, regional storm water protection, groundwater management and water conservation. It serves approximately 109,000 residential and business customers across 1,000 square miles, located primarily in Riverside County, but also in portions of Imperial and San Diego counties.
CVWD was formed in 1918 to protect and conserve local water sources. The district relies on three sources of water to provide service to its customers: groundwater, recycled water, and imported water either through the State Water Project or from the Colorado River via the Coachella Canal, a branch of the All-American Canal.
Coachella Valley Water District first ventured into providing drinking water to Coachella Valley residents in 1961, when it took over the operations of two privately held water companies. Initially the district served only 1,100 active water meters. Today, the district is the largest provider of drinking water in the Coachella Valley. CVWD is headquartered in Coachella, near Palm Springs.
