PV Water’s College Lake Water Supply Project Breaks Ground by Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency Jun 12, 2023 Member Submitted News WATSONVILLE — Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency (PV Water) is celebrating the groundbreaking of the College Lake Water Supply Project Construction, which will help achieve sustainable water resources within the Pajaro Valley. The PV Water project will develop College Lake as a new water supply for the Pajaro Valley. The new project will use the water to reduce groundwater pumping, helping to reduce groundwater overdraft and seawater intrusion, while improving habitat for the endangered South-central California coast steelhead. There are two project components to the $68 million project: the Water Treatment Plant and Intake Facilities, and the Pipeline. The groundbreaking event, held Friday, June 9, at the site of the future Water Treatment Plant and Intake Facilities, featured remarks by Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren (D-CA 18th District), PV Water Board Chair Amy Newell, Board Member and former General Manager Mary Bannister, and General Manager Brian Lockwood. The most visible aspect of the project will be construction of a 6-mile, 30-inch water main pipeline that will be used to transport treated water from the new water treatment plant to over 5,500 acres of farmland via PV Water’s Coastal Distribution System. On Monday, June 12, crews will begin open trenching for the pipeline. Construction is expected to last 18 months and will cause traffic impacts that affect Watsonville residents, as well as those commuting through the region. Construction updates will be posted at www.pvwater.org/construction and on social media (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter). The Water Treatment Plant and Intake Facilities, located at 76 Holohan Road, will have two pumps that pull water from the lake. A new weir will be adjustable to not increase or change flood conditions at College Lake. The weir will also have a fish passage allowing fish to enter and exit College Lake during migration and out-migration periods. The Water Treatment Plant also includes a ballasted flocculation/sedimentation function, a materials storage area, a treated water pump station, sediment drying beds and a treatment support building. Groundwater accounts for more than 90% of water use in the Pajaro Valley Basin. Throughout the Pajaro Valley Groundwater Basin, groundwater levels are overdrafted, meaning they are below sea level because of long-term unsustainable pumping of the groundwater aquifer. Overdraft conditions result in seawater intrusion, groundwater quality degradation and groundwater storage depletion. The College Lake Project will provide the largest new source of water in the Pajaro Valley since the completion of the Watsonville Area Water Recycling Facility in 2009, a facility that is jointly operated by PV Water and the City of Watsonville. ABOUT PV WATER The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency (PV Water) is a state-chartered water management district, and a Groundwater Sustainability Agency, formed to efficiently and economically manage existing and supplemental water supplies in order to prevent further increase in, and to accomplish continuing reduction of, long-term overdraft. PV Water works to provide and ensure sufficient water supplies for present and future anticipated needs within its boundaries, generally the greater coastal Pajaro Valley. For more information, visit www.pvwater.org or www.facebook.com/PajaroValleyWater. # # #
