It takes more than wishful thinking to receive competitive grant funds from the California Department of Water Resources; it takes knowledge, skill, and a meaningful project.

Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Agency hit the mark in all three qualifiers when Agency officials applied for funds from the Proposition 1 Round 2 Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Implementation Grant Solicitation. AVEK General Manager Matthew Knudson cheerfully announced the grant award of $625,000 for reconstructing the Mojave Pump Station to Agency Directors at their Board Meeting on May 23, 2023. DWR notified AVEK of the awarded funds in a letter dated May 18, 2023. 

This project will provide greater reliability to the Mojave Public Utility District (MPUD), a retail water agency serving the disadvantaged community of Mojave within the Fremont Basin Region. The application describing the project stated that the North Region Pump Station Facility will replace an existing non-insulated metal structure with a permanent, insulated, climate-controlled concrete/block building measuring roughly 30-feet by 70-feet. The new building will provide a more energy efficient and secure facility for the existing water system assets, which includes four high lift pumps and a Motor Control Center,. 

The construction site is situated in the Fremont Basin Region. This project involves pouring a slab foundation, footings and the erection of walls and a roof. Increased climate resiliency is one goal of the project and will be accomplished by targeting multiple risks and vulnerabilities, while improving water system energy efficiency.

Elements of the project include response to changing or extreme weather patterns made possible by the insulated structure that contains energy efficient heating, ventilation and cooling, an HVAC system for the Motor Control Center with electronic components that control and run pumps functioning at optimal temperatures to maintain reliability.

Pumps within the building will have reduced exposure to environmental elements, making them less vulnerable to the natural hazards of floods, wind damage, and wildfire. At the same time, the project improves energy efficiency and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. An LED lighting system will reduce electrical loads from Edison.

The concrete structure provides an enhanced security system to protect local assets, making the water system less vulnerable to potential vandalism or theft, reducing the likelihood of service outages.

MPUD relies on supplemental water supplies which AVEK, the third largest State Water Project contractor, imports from Northern California via a conveyance system when allocations of Table A water from DWR are abundant. During wet years, AVEK stores its excess supplies of imported water in groundwater banks for use during droughts, a benefit to MPUD and all other AVEK customers.

To learn more about the Proposition 1 IRWM grant funding program Click Here