LA officials unveil groundwater recharge project in Sun Valley

Hailing it as an advancement that will bolster future water supplies, Los Angeles city officials Thursday cut the ribbon on a Sun Valley project that will dramatically increase the capacity of a stormwater recapture and groundwater-recharge system.

“As L.A. continues to grow and our access to fresh water is at risk, it’s clear we have to improve our existing systems,” City Council President Nury Martinez said in a statement after the ceremony at the Tujunga Spreading Grounds. “Now these grounds have the potential to provide enough water to serve 64,000 households annually and this community has brand new walking trails, picnic tables, and outdoor classrooms.

“Projects like these are our city’s future — building in a way that battles climate change, prioritizes environmental justice and improves the health and well-being of the surrounding community.”

Working with the Los Angeles County Flood Control District, the multimillion-dollar, 150-acre project reconfigured 20 smaller water basins into nine wider, deeper basins, officials said. The result is a doubling of the annual groundwater-recharge capacity of the groundwater basin to roughly 16,000 acre-feet.

Officials said the project also improved the ability of the site to recapture stormwater runoff, which will then be injected into the groundwater supply.

“During this historic drought we want our customers to know that we are taking action locally to expand our local drinking water supplies and capture more rainfall to store in our local aquifer,” Cynthia McClain-Hill, president of the Board of Water and Power Commissioners, said in a statement. “The Tujunga Spreading Grounds expansion project diverts water that would otherwise flow out to the ocean and allows us to capture it and use it for our customers.”

The site, in addition to serving as a water-recapture and recharge site, also includes a park-like setting, with walking paths and sitting areas.