President's Message
Shawn Dewane
The 17th Annual Children's Water Education Festival (Festival) took place March
27-28, 2013 at the University of California, Irvine, where it hosted more than 7,000
third, fourth and fifth grade students from 72 Orange County schools. Presented
by the Orange County Water District (OCWD; District), Disneyland Resort, National
Water Research Institute, and the OCWD Groundwater Guardian Team, the Festival is
an opportunity to educate students about water and the environment.
This signature event demonstrates OCWD's commitment to environmental stewardship
by empowering youth to care for the planet and its many natural resources. This
year approximately 60 organizations participated as Festival presenters and taught
students using hands-on activities aligned with California State Science Standards.
Organizations such as National Geographic, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Wyland Foundation,
local universities and city and county agencies participate in Festival year after
year to demonstrate their commitment to enhancing our youth's environmental education.
The Festival is not possible without the support of the presenters, generous sponsors
and more than 350 dedicated volunteers. On behalf of the District I would like to
thank everyone who participated, especially this year's title sponsor, Used
Oil Recycling. We truly cannot do it without you! Since the Festival's inception
these many organizations and individuals have helped educate more than 100,000 students.
To view a list of participating sponsors, get involved or for more information about
the event, please visit
www.childrenwaterfestival.com
or contact Amanda Gavin at (714) 378-3202,
agavin@ocwd.com
O.C. Water Summit Program Highlights
Hosted by Orange County Water District, Disneyland Resort and the Municipal Water
District of Orange County, the O.C. Water Summit takes place Friday, May 17 at Disney's
Grand Californian Hotel in Anaheim. This year's theme, "The Classic Tale of
Water Past, Present and Yet to Come," will bring together a diverse group of leaders
and experts in their respective fields to engage Southern California business professionals,
public officials, community leaders, water stakeholders, and others in an examination
of past investments in our state's water infrastructure and natural resources.
Speakers include Richard Riordan, former mayor of Los Angeles, Peter McBride, co-author
of "The Colorado River: Flowing Through Conflict" and director of "Chasing Water,"
Patricia Mulroy, General Manager, Southern Nevada Water Authority and many more!
If you have not yet registered for the O.C. Water Summit, please visit
www.ocwatersummit.com. The early registration
rate of $115 per person ends on Tuesday, May 7. After that date registration increases
to $130 per person. Registration includes Summit materials, continental breakfast,
lunch, self-parking and a dynamic program. Don't miss out; register today!
Sound Financial Management
The Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting was awarded
to the Orange County Water District by the Government Finance Officers Association
of the United States and Canada for its comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR).
The CAFR is a set of U.S. government financial statements comprising the financial
report of a state, municipal or other governmental entity that complies with the
accounting requirements published by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board.
The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of
governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a
significant accomplishment by a government and its management.
This award exemplifies OCWD's commitment to sound financial management. The
District's Finance Department, under the leadership of OCWD Chief Financial
Officer Randy Fick, is repeatedly recognized for its superb financial accountability
and reporting.
OCWD Commends the City of Santa Ana
The Orange County Water District manages the groundwater basin that provides water
to 19 municipal water agencies and special districts, one of which is the city of
Santa Ana, and serves more than 2.4 million people. OCWD would like to commend Santa
Ana's implementation of its Deep Wells and Booster Stations Program for which
it recently received a 2013 Resource Efficiency Award from the California Municipal
Utilities Association (CMUA).
The City's Water Resources Division of the Public Works Agency was the direct
recipient of the award, which fell under the category of water programs for a small
utility. CMUA typically presents nine awards per year: an award for a small, medium
and large utility for each of three categories including customer service, energy
and water programs. This year only seven awards were presented.
The award-winning program was a proactive measure taken by Santa Ana to optimize
the efficiency of its water system and to better serve its residential, commercial
and industrial customers. The project benefits include energy savings, conserving
water resources, reduction of operating costs, and lower greenhouse gas emissions.
For more about the project or the city of Santa Ana, visit
www.ci.santa-ana.ca.us/pwa/.
IRWD Wells 21 and 22 Project
The Irvine Ranch Water District (IRWD) provides drinking water, sewage collection
and treatment, recycled water, and urban runoff treatment to Central Orange County.
It serves the City of Irvine and portions of the Cities of Costa Mesa, Lake Forest,
Newport Beach, Tustin, Santa Ana, Orange and unincorporated Orange County.
IRWD recently completed the Wells 21 and 22 Rehabilitation, Pipelines and Water
Treatment Plant project, which will help satisfy increasing demand for water by
providing approximately 6,700 acre-feet per year of drinking water. It recovers
and treats local impaired groundwater for use in the potable water system. Wells
21 and 22 were drilled in 1992, but were found to have elevated levels of total
dissolved solids, nitrates, and hardness that prevented them from being used for
drinking water. At that time, treating the water was not a cost-effective solution.
In 2010, IRWD received approximately $10 million from the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) through the United States Bureau of Reclamation to partially
fund this $40-million project. The ARRA funding made it possible to connect the
two wells to the IRWD drinking water system and build a water treatment plant to
ensure the water would be suitable for potable use.
Construction for the project began in 2011 and was completed in early 2013. Adding
this new source of drinking water helps ensure IRWD has a diversified, safe and
reliable water supply. For more information about IRWD, please visit
www.irwd.com.
OCSD's General Manager Retires
The relationship between OCWD and the Orange County Sanitation District has been
cultivated over nearly 40 years of cooperation that began with Water Factory 21
in the 1970s and continues today with the Groundwater Replenishment System (GWRS)
and its Initial Expansion.
OCWD and its board of directors have had the opportunity to work closely with OCSD's
General Manager Jim Ruth since 2005. He was instrumental in bringing the two agencies
together to build the
GWRS. The Board and staff would like to commend and congratulate Jim on his dedication
and successful leadership at OCSD and wish him well in his retirement. Jim helped
strengthen the public partnership between OCSD and OCWD that serves as a model for
other agencies to come together and maximize their talent and resources to solving
water and infrastructure challenges. As Jim Herberg, who held the position of OCSD's
Director of Engineering, assumes the role of General Manager the District looks
forward to working with him and his staff as they continue OCSD's legacy of success
and collaboration.
March Tours
OCWD would like to thank its local, national and international visitors for touring
the Groundwater Replenishment System. From January through March 2013, OCWD hosted
45 tours of it for 895 guests. Following is a list of March tour guests: the public
tour; Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Water Recycling Planning Group;
members of the Mono Lake Committee; water distribution students from San Bernardino
Valley College; environmental science students from Katella and Huntington Beach
High Schools; nursing, health science and community/public health students from
California State University, Fullerton; earth science students from the University
of California, Irvine; students from Rancho Santiago College; a delegation of staff
from China's EPA; Estancia High School students; staff from Mohave Water District;
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher and dignitaries from Kazakhstan.
Public tours of the Groundwater Replenishment System are offered at
10 a.m. on the first Friday of every month; reservations are required. Tours may be scheduled for other days of the week, depending on staff availability. To schedule a tour or to request more information, please contact Becky Mudd at (714) 378-3362 or
bmudd@ocwd.com. To schedule a speaker, please contact Rose Wilke at (714) 378-3206 or
rwilke@ocwd.com. You may also visit
www.ocwd.com to schedule these activities online.
CONTACT US
www.ocwd.com
18700 Ward Street
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
(714) 378-3200
info@ocwd.com
You are receiving this email from the Orange County Water District. If you would like to be removed from OCWD's email list, please respond to this email with "Unsubscribe" in the subject line. Thank you.