Bureau of Reclamation selects 63 projects to receive $4.1 million to improve water efficiency and reliability

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Bureau of Reclamation

Sep 05, 2019, 15:30 ET


Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) September 05, 2019 -- The Bureau of Reclamation has selected 63 projects to receive a total of $4.1 million for small-scale water efficiency grants. The grants will help the water entities use water more efficiently and improve water supply reliability in the western United States.

"This WaterSMART program improves water conservation and reliability for communities throughout the West," said Reclamation Commissioner Brenda Burman. "This cost-shared funding is providing an opportunity for these water providers and tribes to invest in using their water more efficiently."

Projects in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah and Washington will receive funding. For example,

  • The Central Colorado Water Conservancy District in Greeley, Colorado, will receive $75,000 to install supervisory control and data acquisition devices on 120 irrigation wells in northeast Colorado.
  • The Pueblo of Zia in northern New Mexico will receive $70,320 to install 40 radio-read water meters at currently unmetered homes to access accurate water usage data.
  • The Quincy-Columbia Basin Irrigation District in Quincy, Washington, will receive $23,130 to upgrade a turnout gate to an automated gate that will enable automatic adjustments to flows for more reliable water deliveries to farms.

Under this funding opportunity, applicants can request up to $75,000 in Reclamation funding and must contribute a non-federal cost-share of at least 50% of total project costs. Learn more at https://www.usbr.gov/watersmart/swep/.

Small-Scale Water Efficiency Projects are part of the WaterSMART Program. Through WaterSMART, Reclamation works cooperatively with states, tribes, and local entities as they plan and implement actions to increase water supply reliability through investments to modernize existing infrastructure and attention to local water conflicts. Visit http://www.usbr.gov/watersmart to learn more.

Peter Soeth, Bureau of Reclamation, https://www.usbr.gov, +1 (303) 445-3615, [email protected]