FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif. — Recently two important Orange County Water District (OCWD) projects were included on the list of recommendations for Prop. 84 Round 2 funding to be awarded by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), according to a press release.
The announcement came from the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA) Commission. SAWPA is the regional agency administrator for the Proposition 84 Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Program for the Santa Ana River Watershed.
Twenty-two projects were recommended to receive $16 million in funding, including $750,000 to OCWD for its Prado Sediment Demonstration Project and $500,000 for its Alamitos Barrier Improvement Project.
The Alamitos Barrier Improvement Project could receive an additional $500,000 contingent upon possible Prop. 84 Round 1 project funding carryover, noted the release.
The $7.2 million Prado Sediment Demonstration Project proposes to remove sediment from within Prado Basin and reintroduce it into the river below Prado Dam. Partnering with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the project will develop a new method to manage sediment movement in the Santa Ana River Watershed.
Benefits of the project include increased water storage for flood control and water conservation, increasing the useful life of Prado Dam, reduced sedimentation trends that threaten infrastructure (i.e. wetlands, roads and bridges) and reduced streambed incision, thereby halting embankment erosion that results in wildlife habitat destruction, stated the release.
Read the entire press release here.
