Bay Area Breathe California Clean Air Award

The District was recently notified that it has received the Bay Area Breathe California Clean Air Award for its achievements in reducing air pollution through saving energy and using cleaner energy sources. The District was the only organization to receive the award in the Leadership category. The award recognizes the District's exceptional investment of time and resources towards the goal of providing cleaner water and air for the citizens of Santa Clara County .

In an effort towards adapting to and mitigating the effects of climate change, the District has developed a comprehensive suite of water conservation and water recycling programs that have resulted in cumulative savings of 370,000 acre-feet (AF) of new water supplies between fiscal year (FY) 92-93 and FY 05-06. In addition to saving water and providing greater water supply reliability, water conservation and water recycling programs save energy and thereby reduce air pollutant emissions, including carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. The District’s programs have resulted in a savings of approximately 1.42 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh), which represents a financial savings of approximately $183 million dollars and is equivalent to the annual electricity required for 207,000 households. Through saving energy, the emissions of approximately 335 million kg of carbon dioxide, were eliminated, which is the equivalent of removing 72,000 passenger cars from the roads for one year.

The award application also summarized how the District is continuously working to achieve energy efficiency and maximize renewable power usage at its facilities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The most recent projects include a 200kW photovoltaic solar project to reduce its Almaden Headquarters electricity usage by 10 percent. The District has also joined the Power and Water Resources Pooling Authority (PWRPA), and is committed to replacing its oldest fleet vehicles with hybrid vehicles.