We finally had a wet winter and there is snow in the mountains. Everywhere you look you see a story about the drought being over and reservoirs filling up. Unfortunately that message is not the same in Rancho California Water District’s service area. In short, one year of heavy rain won’t erase the many years of drought that have severely impacted our local water supplies.
Unlike many of our neighboring agencies who rely extensively on imported water, a significant portion of the District’s water supply comes from local water. Local water can range from approximately 30 to 40% of the entire District’s water supply. This is a huge benefit for our customers as it keeps our rates lower. Imported water costs over five times as much as what the District from its local groundwater and water from Vail Lake which is used to replenish groundwater. During the last several years of drought RCWD customers benefited greatly from the District’s use of local water from the ground and from Vail to offset the rising costs of imported water, all the while these sources were significantly reduced due to the minimal rainfall. Even after all of the recent rains this winter, our groundwater supply is 30% lower than normal and Vail Lake is only at 35% capacity.