Date: April 1, 2003

Grants available for local community
watershed-protection efforts

SAN JOSE – The Santa Clara Valley Water District board of directors voted unanimously today to provide as much as $300,000 in grant monies to local non-profit organizations working to protect Santa Clara County’s watersheds.

Eligible applicants working to enhance the board of directors’ goals of enhancing ecosystem health, ensuring a continued supply of drinking water and/or improving the quality of water in Santa Clara County could receive awards of up to $25,000 each from the Watershed Stewardship Grant program.

“We exist to make sure the community always has a reliable supply of clean drinking water, and to create an enhanced quality of life in the county through the protection of our watersheds,” said Sig Sanchez, chairman of the Santa Clara Valley Water District board of directors.

“This grant money is intended for local non-profit groups whose work complements what we do at the district and moves us closer to those goals.”

As Santa Clara County’s water resources management agency, the district oversees several programs to protect the area’s five major watersheds. Those watersheds stretch from the Santa Cruz mountains to the west and the Diablo Range on the east, and are defined by more than 700 miles of streams that flow through the valley floor out to San Francisco or Monterey bays.

Grant-competition requirements will be shared during a free workshop April 18. The workshop begins at 9 a.m. in the Santa Clara Valley Water District boardroom, 5700 Almaden Expressway (one block south of Blossom Hill Road), San Jose. Grants are funded by the district and administered through Community Foundation Silicon Valley.

Grant applications are available now by logging on to the district Web site, www.valleywater.org, or by contacting Karna Carlson at (408) 265-2607, ext. 2944 (kcarlson@valleywater.org). Applications are due no later than 5 p.m. May 2.

The Santa Clara Valley Water District manages Santa Clara County's wholesale drinking water resources, coordinates flood protection for its 1.7 million residents and provides stewardship for the county's 10 reservoirs and more than 700 miles of streams.