Date: April 2, 2003

Santa Clara Valley Water District earns U.S. EPA recognition for 'extraordinary' watershed protection

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Santa Clara Valley Water District has won recognition from the United States Environmental Protection Agency for protecting Santa Clara County's watersheds.

Recognition as a "Clean Water Partner for the 21st Century," according to EPA officials, denotes the district's "extraordinary achievement in watershed protection" beyond federal requirements.

"We're pleased to receive this recognition, and I think it affirms how seriously we take our responsibility to ensure clean, safe drinking water, flood protection and watershed management for all of Santa Clara County," said Sig Sanchez, chairman of the district board of directors.

The district is one of 79 water agencies nationally - one of five in California - granted recognition from EPA. An award was presented Tuesday to district Director Greg Zlotnick from EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman.

"I am proud the federal government has honored the Santa Clara Water District for its outstanding work in reducing pollution and improving water quality," said Rep. Zoe Lofgren, (D-San Jose). "Clean water is something the public expects, and I congratulate our water district for stepping up to the plate and making our water clean and safe.

"I will continue to work with our outstanding water district and the Environmental Protection Agency to ensure that citizens have clean water to drink."

The water district protects the county's five major watersheds as a means of providing a healthy, safe and enhanced quality of living in Santa Clara County through the comprehensive management of water resources in a practical, cost-effective and environmentally sensitive manner.

Formed in 1929 by county voters, the Santa Clara Valley Water District was initially responsible for catching and storing rainfall to replenish severely overdrafted groundwater basins. In the 1930s and 1950s, a series of reservoirs were built to help stop subsidence - a downward movement of the ground surface resulting from a reduction in groundwater basin reserves.

In 1968, the district assumed flood protection duties from the county. Two years ago, Gov. Gray Davis signed into a law legislation allowing the district to amend its 50-year-old enabling act to better reflect its watershed-management responsibilities.

To be considered for Clean Water Partner status, the district had to demonstrate several watershed protection activities, including:

• Playing a lead role in the Santa Clara Basin Watershed Management Initiative - a coalition of regional and local public agencies; civic, environmental, resource conservation and agricultural groups; professional and trade organizations; business and industrial interests, and the general public. The WMI has developed a basin-wide watershed action plan and was recognized in 2001 by Gov. Davis as one of the top 10 watershed efforts in California.

• Initiating a voluntary scientific evaluation of copper and nickel in South San Francisco Bay under the auspices of the WMI, and in partnership with the City of San José and Santa Clara Valley Urban Pollution Prevention Program. The study is part of a San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board plan for reducing the volume of those metals in the bay.

• Organizing and managing comprehensive public outreach campaigns, including the district's Clean, Safe Creeks and Natural Flood Protection program, it's Adopt-A-Creek program, the Watershed Management Initiative's "Watershed Watch" campaign and annual regional summits on regulatory and land-use issues.

In addition to the Santa Clara Valley Water District, the EPA honored four other California water agencies - the Contra Costa Water District, the East Bay Municipal Utilities District, the Marin Municipal Water District and the Five Counties Salmonid Conservation Program, comprised of Del Norte County, Humboldt County Department of Public Works, Mendocino Water Agency and Siskiyou County Public Works.

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.