The Fenner Valley Water Authority (“FVWA”) today announced the
creation of a $5 Million fund, the Southern California Clean Water
Fund (“Clean Water Fund” or “SCCWF”), dedicated to aiding small
water systems that are pursuing water quality improvements in
Southern California. The Clean Water Fund will be underwritten by
Cadiz Inc. which is developing the Cadiz Valley Water Conservation,
Recovery and Storage Project, a public-private partnership to
increase Southern California’s reliable water supplies by
conserving groundwater presently lost to evaporation in eastern San
Bernardino County.
FVWA will administer the fund, which is designed to be accessed
by small water systems that serve disadvantaged communities in
counties across Southern California. The Clean Water Fund will be
dedicated to helping small water systems in disadvantaged
communities and severely disadvantaged communities (“Eligible Small
Water Systems”) develop and maintain water treatment systems.
“Extensive state and national research reflect that
disadvantaged communities experience disproportionately poor
delivery of basic services,” said Betty Olson, Ph.D., chair of the
Board of Directors for Fenner Valley Water District. “Small water
systems that service these communities can often suffer from poor
water quality and water supply shortages, therefore solutions are
needed to help them better serve customers. This new fund will help
small water systems deliver clean, safe and affordable water in
their communities.”
The fund will reserve $3 Million for use by Eligible Small Water
Systems located in the County of San Bernardino, with the remaining
$2 Million available to Eligible Small Water Systems located in any
county in Southern California (including San Bernardino County)
that receives water from the Cadiz Water Project.
“We have long been committed to dedicating the water supply
benefits of the Cadiz Project to the local communities that most
need reliable water. However, some smaller systems and
disadvantaged communities are in remote locations and beyond our
physical reach,” said Scott Slater, CEO of Cadiz Inc. “With this $5
million fund we believe we have found a way to help some of these
smaller water systems in their struggle to provide reliable clean
and safe water in their communities and we fully embrace the
opportunity to serve as a private partner in addressing regional
water quality challenges through this fund.”
The State of California has imposed requirements making it a
national leader in clean water standards, but limited state and
federal funds are available to ensure the State’s vision of clean
water for all, especially those in disadvantaged communities, can
be implemented.
“We applaud Fenner Valley Water Authority and Cadiz for its
efforts to support communities that are disproportionately impacted
by contaminated water in Southern California with the creation of
this $5 million Clean Water Fund,” said Dave Rodriguez, Executive
Board Member at California League of United Latin American
Citizens. “Clean drinking water is essential for Latino families,
communities and businesses to survive and thrive, making this not
only an issue of environmental justice, but also of civil rights.
This fund will help get much needed investments into water systems
serving thousands of Latino families across the region in order to
deliver clean water, a fundamental human right.”
Julian Canete, president and CEO of the California Hispanic
Chambers of Commerce, added: “Lack of access to clean and
affordable water impacts many Hispanic-owned and operated
businesses across the state so we are pleased to see the creation
of this Fund that will help level the playing field by addressing
water contamination in some of the hardest-hit communities in
Southern California.”
“Communities of color suffer disproportionately when it comes to
water contamination across the country and Southern California is
no exception, which is why we support the creation of this new Fund
and the impact it will have in helping bring clean, affordable
water to where it’s needed most,” said Pastor William D. Smart,
Jr., president and CEO of the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference.
In carrying out its responsibilities, FVWA will coordinate its
efforts with wholesale water agencies within San Bernardino County,
including but not limited to the Mojave Water Agency, Inland Empire
Utilities Agency, and Twentynine Palms Water District, seeking
their collective input to maximize the likelihood that desert
communities and small water systems within the County of San
Bernardino are aware of the Clean Water Fund and the opportunity it
presents for financial assistance. The Clean Water Fund agreement
also calls for San Bernardino County to independently approve
grants to any County-based water system.
Eligible Small Water Systems will be invited to submit
applications for water quality improvement projects in 2019. Funds
will be made available following construction of the Cadiz Water
Project.
Cadiz Inc. initiated the Clean Water Fund following its own
experience exploring water treatment options for its planned Cadiz
Water Project operations. Water from the Cadiz Valley meets all
state and federal drinking water standards without treatment and
has very low total dissolved solids. However, in 2015, Cadiz Inc.
began a research and development initiative to develop a plan to
treat its groundwater for certain naturally occurring constituents
prior to delivery to the Southern California water transportation
system so that, if required, it is the same or better than the
quality of water already in the system.
“Cadiz invested heavily into R&D and we are able to
cost-effectively treat our groundwater if required. Not all water
providers have that option, including those in disadvantaged
communities, and we believe we can help through the administration
of this fund,” added Slater. “We look forward to engaging with San
Bernardino County agencies in identifying places the fund can
help.”
In a letter to FVWA in support of the Clean Water Fund
agreement, Adan Ortega, Executive Director of California
Association of Mutual Water Companies, said: “Cadiz Inc. has been
at the forefront of developing affordable modular technologies for
the treatment of chromium-6 and arsenic, that may have benefits for
small water systems. We are thus gratified that they would be
exploring an expansion of their role with Fenner in this critical
arena - especially in Southern California where disadvantaged
communities have not been the focus of many resources from the
state for safe drinking water.”
More information about the fund is available at
www.socalcleanwaterfund.com
About Fenner Valley Water Authority
The FVWA, formed in November 2014, is a joint powers authority
comprised of Fenner Valley Mutual Water Company, a non-profit
California mutual water company consisting of water providers
participating in the Cadiz Water Project, and Santa Margarita Water
District (SMWD). The Authority is led by a three-person Board
of Directors, appointed by the participating agencies; and two
administrators who oversee FVWA operations. The FVWA will
operate the Cadiz Water Project and implement the
project’s Groundwater Monitoring, Mitigation and
Management Plan. Once built, the FVWA will lease the
Project facilities from Cadiz Inc. To learn more, visit
www.fvwa.org.
About Cadiz Inc.
Founded in 1983, Cadiz Inc. (NASDAQ: CDZI) is a
publicly-held renewable resources company that owns 70 square miles
of property with significant water resources in Southern
California. The Company maintains an organic agricultural
development in the Cadiz Valley of eastern San Bernardino County,
California and is partnering with public water agencies to
implement the Cadiz Water Project, which over two phases will
create a new water supply for approximately 400,000 people and make
available up to 1 million acre-feet of new groundwater storage
capacity for the region. Cadiz abides by a wide-ranging “Green
Compact” focused on environmental conservation and sustainable
practices to manage its land, water and agricultural resources. For
more information, please visit www.cadizinc.com.
Contact: Jim LeachFenner Valley
Water Authority949-459-6601jiml@smwd.com
Courtney DegenerCadiz Inc.213-271-1600cdegener@cadizinc.com
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENT: This release contains
forward-looking statements that are subject to significant risks
and uncertainties, including statements related to the future
operating and financial performance of the Company and the
financing activities of the Company. Although the Company believes
that the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements
are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations
will prove to be correct. Factors that could cause actual results
or events to differ materially from those reflected in the
Company’s forward-looking statements include the Company’s ability
to maximize value for Cadiz land and water resources, the Company’s
ability to obtain new financing as needed, the receipt of
additional permits for the water project and other factors and
considerations detailed in the Company’s Securities and Exchange
Commission filings.
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