SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The Bureau of Reclamation announces the selection of two projects to receive $2 million total in Agricultural Water Conservation and Efficiency grants for fiscal year 2017. Combined with local cost-share contributions, the projects are expected to implement about $14 million in agricultural water management improvement projects during the next 24 months.
The AWCE grants program is a joint effort with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to promote district level water conservation improvements that facilitate on-farm water use efficiency and conservation.
Here’s a closer look at the two selected applicants and projects:
North Kern Water Storage District, $1 million
The Calloway Canal Lining and Water Delivery Improvements Project will line 2,631 feet of Calloway Canal and implement metering, water level and quality sensors, and modernize methods to determine the water requirement of crops for irrigation scheduling. The project is expected to save 1,346 acre-feet of water annually over the 50-year life of the project.
North San Joaquin Water Conservation District, $1 million
The North San Joaquin Water Conservation District project will line 7 miles of concrete pipe with PVC pipe, replace 103 turnouts with modern flow meters and pressure controlled connections, and incorporate an automated scheduling and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system--or SCADA. The project is expected to save 2,780 acre-feet of water annually over the 30-year life of the project.
For more information on the Agricultural Water Conservation and Efficiency grant program, please contact Anna Sutton at 916-978-5214 (TTY 800-877-8339) or asutton@usbr.gov.
Source: Bureau of Reclamation
