CA WATER COMMISSION: Screening process for eligible water storage projects; Commission continues conveyance conversation
At the December 2020 meeting, the California Water Commission approved moving forward with a screening process to find potential projects that could be eligible for the Water Storage Investment Program after the Temperance Flat project stalled and withdrew from the program. The screening process is designed to discover potential projects that could meet the statutory deadlines outlined in Water Code Section 79757, which requires the commission to make findings of feasibility for all water shortage investment program funded projects before January 1, 2022.
The California Water Commission is in the process of assessing the state’s role in financing conveyance projects that could help meet needs in a changing climate, as tasked by action 19.4 in the Water Resilience Portfolio. This work advances the portfolio’s goal of promoting statewide water resilience and reinforces the role that the Commission plays as the primary public forum for the discussion of improving water management policy to assist regions in achieving climate resiliency, as stated in goal one of the Commission’s strategic plan. At the California Water Commission’s January meeting, Assistant Executive Officer Laura Jensen reviewed the information presented by the expert panel on December on public benefits, discussed a list of public benefits that the state might fund, and how those benefits could be valued.