The Tuolumne-Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Authority will receive $525,000 to address drinking water reliability for underrepresented communities in the Tuolumne-Stanislaus region and specifically address the human right to water for unhoused residents. California law states that every person has the right to clean, safe, and affordable drinking water. Read more here: https://water.ca.gov/News/News-Releases/2022/June-22/DWR-Awards-%2429-Million-to-Underrepresented-Communities-and-Tribes-for-Drought-Relief?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery
Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians Awarded $3.6 Million in State Funding to Improve Water Infrastructure on Tribal Lands
TUOLUMNE, CA: The Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians announces that the Tribe has been awarded approximately $3.6 million in funding to install a water tank as well as improve and replace water infrastructure on the Tuolumne Rancheria. The awards draw from two phases of the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) Urban and Multi-benefit Drought Relief Grant program. The grant applications were completed by the Tribe through the Tuolumne-Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Authority (T-Stan IRWMA). Read more at: Tuolumne_PressRelease_WaterInfrastructureUpgrade_220412
Major Grant Touted to Transform Twain Harte
Twain Harte, CA – A new grant will help Twain Harte turn stormwater into a resource, say community leaders.
The $3.75 million in funding was awarded to the Twain Harte Community Services District through the State Water Resources Control Board’s Stormwater Grant Program. It will be used to construct the Twain Harte Community Stormwater Enhancement Project.
The district called it an “amazing win” for the community in a press release. Also, noting that it “will enhance water quality in our creek and lake, rehabilitate our failing storm drain system, improve water supply reliability, reduce erosion, create fire-safe landscapes and provide fun, interactive education that will empower residents to do the same on their properties.”
The project incorporates simple, innovative stormwater improvements throughout the community, and turns “stormwater into a resource,” advised district officials. They added that coupled with outdoor education labs in Twain Harte Meadows Park makes the “community a model and learning center for other communities.”
The district provided this list of project improvements through four main subprojects shown in the graphic and outlined here:
County Storm Drain Rehabilitation
- Rehabilitation of deteriorated storm drain from the shopping center to the park, eliminating the risk of dangerous sinkholes, improving water quality, and reducing sedimentation in the creek.
- New sidewalk and gutters along the east side of Joaquin Gully through downtown to provide better stormwater flows and pedestrian access.
Twain Harte School Stormwater Capture
- A large tank to capture and clean stormwater from the storm drain, providing water for their field, reducing the need for treated water supply, and reducing creek flows in storms.
- Several smaller tanks to capture rainwater off building roofs to be used for landscaping, reducing the need for treated water supply.
Twain Harte CSD Office Stormwater Enhancements
- Removal of paved parking area and installation of a larger permeable parking area to support parking for the fire facility, reducing existing flooding issues.
- Bioswales to slow stormwater and filter/clean it before it flows downtown and into the creek.
- Rain tanks to capture rainwater off building roofs to water landscaping and keep area hydrated and more fire safe.
Twain Harte Meadows Park
- Constructs more than half of the Twain Harte Meadows Park – everything except large outdoor pavilion, bathrooms and parking lot.
- Recreation and educational demonstration site for a variety of stormwater re-use techniques, including hands-on outdoor learning labs in Meadows Park.
The project is a collaborative effort between Twain Harte CSD, Tuolumne County, Twain Harte School, Tuolumne Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Authority, and Tuolumne County Resources Conservation District. The grant agreement is expected to be finalized in the fall and then get underway.
New Tools Indicate How Thinning and Fire Affect Forest Water Use and Boost Runoff
Forest-management actions such as mechanical thinning and prescribed burns do not just reduce the risk of severe wildfire and promote forest health — these practices can also contribute to significant increases in downstream water availability.
New research from UC Merced’s Sierra Nevada Research Institute (SNRI) provides the tools to help estimate and verify those changes. Read more at: UC Merced Study Concludes Forest Management Produces Downstream Water Benefits 20-7
Federal Funding Opportunities
WestFAST News highlights multiple federal funding opportunities at: https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.51/y6u.adc.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/MAY-2020-WestFAST-Newsletter.pdf
SNC Funding Newsletter June-July
Please see the link to review multiple funding opportunities. https://sierranevada.ca.gov/funding/funding-opportunities-newsletter/
T-Stan IRWMA Projects Recommended for Funding
$854,950 is recommended by DWR to be awarded through an IRWMA grant application. Recommended recipients are UTICA, Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians, and Groveland Community Services District. The Tuolumne County Resource Conservation District will be compensated for administering the grant. Read more at: Recommended Funding List – Mountain Counties
TUD Awards Bid for Phoenix Lake Construction Contract
The plan was the precursor to several implementation grant applications sponsored by the Tuolumne-Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Authority (T-Stan IRWMA) a local, collaborative joint powers authority. Through the T-Stan IRWMA, the project received Proposition 84 Round 2 funding in 2014 and additional Proposition 84 Drought funding in 2015. Read more at: Construction for Phoenix Lake Project News Article_05062020
CCWD Dispells Myth about Household Water Usage After Efficiency Bill Passes
Customers won’t be fined for using more than 55 gallons per day. See full article at:
http://www.calaverasenterprise.com/news/article_4f46b988-3264-11ea-a9f0-5fc06d1a6b34.html
Meadow Restoration Reflects Collaborative Watershed Efforts
Tori James, MML News Reporter
Sonora, CA — With $12 million in funding, a multi-agency partnership taking a systemic approach to watershed health is literally, applying a “trickle down” approach.
Yesterday, federal, state and local officials had the opportunity to tour one of several local watershed health projects made possible through funding grants administered through the Tuolumne-Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Authority, which help seek monies and develop projects that address water-related issues within the watershed.
Executive Director Lindsay Mattos recounts the group’s foray off Herring Creek Road to visit Coyote and Middle Three meadows, where they viewed completed and in-progress restoration work.
As she explains upfront, “Our role is to provide a space for local agencies, nonprofits and other interested parties to collaborate on watershed health, that includes domestic water, water in the forest — that sort of thing — and we try to plan out projects that benefit each other that all benefit the watershed.”
Effects Filter Downstream
Continuing, she emphasizes, “Meadow restoration benefits wildlife…provides a slow release of water downstream and acts as a filter to slow sediment.” Meadows also slow water feeding downstream creeks and rivers, reduce flooding and store carbon, which can help mitigate climate change effects.
One in a suite of the $12 million in outlined projects, the meadow restoration and culvert replacement on the Stanislaus National Forest in the Summit Ranger District provided tour goers an up close and in-person look.
Work at Coyote Meadow, which completed last year, included restoration and relocation of a poorly located path in the middle that was degrading the area and interrupting water flow. Among plans over the next two years at Middle Three Meadow, the second stop, are to restore a natural stream so that it functions as it should.
All the projects are being jointly funded by the USDA Forest Service and the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006 through the state’s Department of Water Resources and county’s Resource Conservation District.
The takeaway for Mattos is that her collaborative group helped bring a significant chunk of funding that will benefit residents who live in the Stanislaus and Tuolumne River Watershed. As she puts it, “We started putting together the application four years ago, got funding two years ago…for us, as a group, it is really exciting to see some be completed…to get to see them.”
ATCAA Receives $720,000
Sonora, CA — The California Department of Water Resources has awarded regional grant money to help low-income residents reduce water and energy costs.
The Amador-Tuolumne Community Action Agency (ATCAA) has received a $720,700 grant to install high efficiency dishwashers, washing machines, low flow faucets and shower heads.
The program will be free to those that meet income requirements and it will help an estimated 378 homes across three counties (Tuolumne, Amador and Calaveras).
Joe Bors, ATCAA’s Energy and Water Conservation Programs Director, says, “It effectively reduces the amount of water used by each family and also reduces energy costs, which is a primary goal of this program.
The grant program is administered via the state’s Department of Water Resources and is concert with the California Air Quality Board efforts.
Goals include reducing approximately 2,400 metric tons of CO2 emissions, 67-million gallons of water, and 2.9 million kilowatt hours, over the lifetime of the products installed in the homes.
Bors says the funding was announced late last week and he estimates it will take between 5-8 weeks to get the new program off and running. For more information on ATCAA’s Energy services, click here.
Detours continue in Quartz-Stent area
Union Democrat staff /
A detour is expected to be in place for several weeks near Jamestown for construction on Tuolumne Utilities District’s $1.6 million water main extension project in the Quartz-Stent area.
As of Monday, Jacksonville Road will be closed to through traffic between Dutch Mine and Stent Cut-Off roads from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day, TUD announced in a news release.
The district stated that roads will remain open throughout the duration of the project for people who live in the area and customers of Pet Vacations at 10225 Karlee Lane.
School bus routes and pickup locations will remain the same, according to TUD.
The project, which began in late November, involves installing about 12,000 linear feet of pipeline that will connect up to 100 properties to the TUD system.
It came together in response to well failures blamed on the drought and the discovery last year of high levels of nitrates and arsenic in the groundwater to a dozen homes.
Funding for the project is through a grant from the California Department of Water Resources and State Water Resources Control Board.
Mozingo Construction Inc., based in Oakdale, is the contractor on the project. Motorists are asked to drive with caution in the area while construction is taking place.
NOTICE OF INTENT to Adopt IRWMP Updates for Storm Water Planning
The Tuolumne-Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Authority Notice to Adopt IRWM Plan Updates for Storm Water Planning. Notice is hereby given that on 21 December 2016 the Board of Directors of the Authority will hold a public hearing on the proposed updates for the Tuolumne-Stanislaus IRWM Plan at the Tuolumne Utilities District
(18885 Nugget Blvd, Sonora, CA 95370) at 1pm. For a draft of the Plan Updates please visit www.tstan-irwma.org. Questions? Contact T-S IRWMA Administrator at tsirwm@gmail.com or (209) 984-0500. The updates are available here: T-Stan IRWMP Updates for Storm Water Planning 2016
Several Water Projects Flowing In Mother Lode
Tracey Petersen, MML News Reporter July 22, 2016
Sonora, CA – The projects benefit the Stanislaus and Tuolumne watersheds and are being funded by the state through voter approved monies.
The $3.5-million funding for the water projects comes from Proposition 84, the “Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006.” Members of the Tuolumne-Stanislaus Integrated Regional Water Management Authority (T-S IRWMA), made up of more than 25 local water stakeholders, has begun working on eight projects within the region. The Department of Water Resources is overseeing the plans through its Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) program, which is a collaborative effort to manage all aspects of water resources in a region. Developed over the past two years, the Tuolumne-Stanislaus Regional Water Management Plan will utilize state and local funds and in-kind resources to finance the projects.
The authority provided this list of projects:
- Murphys Sanitary District Wastewater Treatment Facility Sprayfield Improvement Project: The project will construct new sprayfield infrastructure on 20 acres adjacent to the existing wastewater treatment facility to provide reliable effluent disposal capacity. Its benefits include protection of ground and surface water as well as public health. Grant Funding: $267,900.00
- Stanislaus National Forest Upper South Fork Stanislaus River Watershed Restoration and Water Quality Enhancement Project: The project will restore seven wet meadows totaling approximately 130 acres and repair approximately 40 road culverts that contribute sediment to aquatic systems. The project will enhance and protect the watershed through improvements to water quality, water storage, flood attenuation, carbon storage, wildlife habitat, and recreational opportunities. Grant Funding: $329,000.00
- Tuolumne County Resource Conservation District Small Parcel Stormwater Pollution Prevention and Landowner Stewardship Program: The project will address site-specific nutrient, sediment, and pathogen discharges into the Stanislaus and Tuolumne River Watersheds from small privately owned parcels through targeted education and outreach to landowners. Program will include locally relevant education materials, workshops, technical assistance, and demonstration projects. Grant Funding: $240,000.00
- Amador Tuolumne Community Action Agency Home Level Water Conservation for the Disadvantaged Community: The Project will conduct outreach, take applications, perform water usage assessments, develop a list of water conservation measures that can be cost-effectively installed, and install water conservation measures for disadvantaged communities (DAC) members who live within the Tuolumne River and Stanislaus River watersheds in Tuolumne and Calaveras Counties. The Project will conserve water and stabilize or lower water rates to supply affordable drinking water to a disadvantaged community. Grant Funding: $188,000.00
- Tuolumne Utilities District Phoenix Lake Preservation and Restoration: The Project will improve water quality and restore storage capacity in Phoenix Lake and the Phoenix Lake watershed. The Project will complete engineering plans for the Phoenix Lake improvements, complete environmental review, obtain all required regulatory permits and compliance, and begin implementation by excavating approximately 45,000 cubic yards of sediment from the lake. Grant Funding: $1,598,000.00
- Tuolumne River Trust Tuolumne-Stanislaus Watershed Outreach and Stewardship: The project will implement a watershed stewardship program and a public education campaign in Tuolumne and Calaveras Counties. Implementation measures will include public outreach through internet and social media as well as presentations, news articles, and events. Project will promote activities to improve watershed health and water use efficiency. Grant Funding: $47,000.00
- Calaveras County Water District Douglas Flat/Vallecito Recycled Water Distribution Project: The project will prepare plans, develop necessary permitting, and construct a recycled water distribution system located at the CCWD wastewater treatment plant in Vallecito. Grant Funding: $188,000.00
- Groveland Community Services District Sewer Lift Station Water Quality Protection Project: The Project will repair identified deficiencies of a sewer collection system serving the community of Big Oak Flat. Implementation measures include improvement to Sewer Lift Station #16, repair of leaks in the Big Oak Flat sewer collection system, and replacement of fittings and couplings in the force main. Redundancy and back-up pumping capability will be added to reduce the potential of sewage spills into the adjacent Rattlesnake Creek. Project benefits include water quality protection for groundwater and Rattlesnake Creek and Don Pedro Reservoir, and protection of public health and the environment. Grant Funding: $564,000.00