Where: Salinas Valley and Greater Monterey County, California
Issue: Disadvantaged communities lack clean, safe drinking water and wastewater treatment and disposal
Outcome: RCAC provides assistance and training to help rural water operators deliver clean water to their communities
The Salinas Valley on California’s Central Coast is one of the most productive agricultural regions in the world. Intensive fertilizer use during several decades, however, has led to nitrate pollution in the region’s groundwater basins.
The area’s economically disadvantaged rural communities have neither the resources nor technical expertise to address water pollution.
In October 2014, California’s State Water Resources Control Board funded the Regional Water Management Group for the Greater Monterey County (IRWM) to address the area’s drinking water and wastewater issues.
Several years earlier, RCAC staff worked with the San Jerardo community in Monterey County to review its water rates and conduct community outreach regarding a proposed rate increase, which was adopted. Later RCAC developed a partnership with Engineers without Borders and helped the community improve its wastewater infrastructure. This pilot project work triggered the Regional Water Quality Control Board to conduct groundwater research to determine the extent of the pesticides, nitrates, and Chromium 6 contamination. It also prompted state regulators to consider interim solutions until long-term solutions can be implemented.
Using this work as a basis, RCAC staff has continued to offer technical assistance in the region. RCAC conducted a needs assessment, a vital tool in determining future solutions such as regionalization and collaborative work with regulators. RCAC also established baseline needs and determined next steps for funding, training and community outreach, all of which are critical to developing long term solutions to deliver safe drinking water and improve wastewater infrastructure.
