By Mike Hazlip—
While California faces another year of rainfall shortages, the Citrus Heights Water District is moving forward with a $3.5 million plan to add a new well to “increase water supply reliability and long-term price stability.”
The water district receives the bulk of its water from Folsom Lake, but has six groundwater wells that are used to supplement surface water.
Citrus Heights Water District Spokeswoman Lea Park-Kim told The Sentinel in an email last week that the new well project is slated to begin its design phase later this month, with completion of the project expected by late 2023.
“With an additional well(s), CHWD can better manage the water resources in the region,” Park-Kim said. “The well also provides an opportunity to work with regional entities such as the Sacramento Groundwater Authority to increase regional supply reliability and implement the goals of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA).”
Funding for the project comes in part from a Department of Water Resources grant for $1.1 million, and Park-Kim said CHWD is waiting for an additional $585,000 to be approved in the 2021-2022 federal budget. Funding is not part of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill recently signed into law by President Joe Biden, Park-Kim said.
The well will be located in the northern part of the water district’s service area, she said, declining to give a specific location for security reasons. The well is planned to be 350 feet deep.
The well will be equipped with “Aquifer Storage and Recovery” technology, which allows drinking water to be injected into the ground during heavy rainfall years to be stored for drought years, according to Park-Kim.
