A newly completed basin project in California has been designed to recharge a drought-depleted aquifer with as much as 479 million gallons annually, helping protect the drinking water supply for roughly 18,000 residents in the Calimesa area.
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The County Line Road basin and turnout project was completed just 12 months after construction began, according to Patch. Water executives and regional officials came out to celebrate its completion on Oct. 14.
“Just a month ago, this water was in Lake Oroville,” Heather Dyer, general manager and CEO of the San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District, said at the celebration, per Patch. “It traveled more than 500 miles through California’s water system to reach this community.”
Prolonged regional droughts have significantly drained groundwater reserves in the Yucaipa Subbasin. Recharge water is coming from Northern California, marking the first time imported water has reached Calimesa…