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LA County and Ventura regions awarded state funding to address drought impacts

LA County and Ventura regions awarded state funding to address drought impacts 599 74 COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES

April 20, 2023
Contact:
Lisette Guzman
Public Information Officer
Los Angeles County Public Works
LiGuzman@dpw.lacounty.gov / (626) 262-2441

LA County and Ventura regions awarded state funding to address drought impacts 

LOS ANGELES — Nearly $4 million in funding has been awarded to water resiliency projects within Los Angeles and Ventura counties, thanks to the state’s Urban and Multibenefit Drought Relief Grant Program.

The funds will provide critical support to three Southern California areas identified within California’s Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Program: the Greater Los Angeles County Region, the Watersheds Coalition of Ventura County Region, and the Upper Santa Clara River Region. The state’s IRWM program provides grant funding for water resource planning, implementation, and disadvantaged community involvement.

“I’d like to thank the Department of Water Resources for this grant supporting the region’s small urban water systems and rural communities that have been affected by drought,” said Director of Los Angeles County Public Works Mark Pestrella, P.E. LA County Public Works submitted the grant proposal on behalf of the Los Angeles-Ventura IRWM Funding Area.

“This type of funding is critical to ensuring that all Los Angeles County residents have access to safe, clean, and reliable water resources,” Pestrella said. “Projects funded by the drought relief program include improvements to flood control and water quality infrastructure, upgrades to water main and treatment systems, well rehabilitations, and updated data gathering technology.”

Authorized by the Budget Act of 2021, the Urban and Multibenefit Drought Relief Grant Program was allotted $200 million to assist communities facing the loss or contamination of their water supplies due to drought, help address immediate drought impacts on human health and safety, and protect fish and wildlife resources.

According to Karla Nemeth, director of the California Department of Water Resources, 14 of the 20 projects awarded will benefit disadvantaged communities and Tribes.

“As we develop long-term strategies to address California’s changing climate and future dry conditions, we must take action now to assist local and regional agencies in managing through another historic drought,” said Nemeth in a statement. “We remain committed to investing in our communities today to ensure a future built on safe and reliable water supplies and a healthy environment.”

Drought relief projects across the funding regions can expect to begin integrating the grant funds as early as May 2023. For more information on the Drought Relief Grants process visit https://water.ca.gov/Water-Basics/Drought/Urban-Multi-Benefit-Drought.

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