This is Part 1 of a 3 day trip I recently took through the California Water Project. 

Mark Twain once opined that “Whiskey is for drinkin’, water is for fightin’ over”. Nowhere has that maxim been born out more truthfully than in the fight over California’s water resources. Like electricity, water is just one of those elements we take for granted in our daily life – flip the switch the lights go on, turn the tap, water comes out. But a cursory look at what’s involved in getting that water to our tap opens the door to an entire world that most of us don’t even know exists.

I know I didn’t until I was invited to accompany a group of community and business leaders on a recent tour of California Water Project facilities hosted by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. The prospect of climbing aboard a bus for three days touring dams and levees and fish hatcheries was about as far from my idea of fun as you could get. But as a Realtor, I am aware of the importance of water to the continued health of our communities and the impact a reduction of this resource would have on our quality of life. When I found that our group of 29 included Mayors from 2 cities, City Councilors from 4 more and various and sundry other leaders from across Southern California, I figured I’d better sit up and pay attention. I’m glad I did.

Planned, constructed and operated by the California Department of Water Resources, the State Water Project includes some 29 storage facilities, 18 pumping plants, 4 pumping-generating plants, 5 hydro-electric power plants and over 660 miles of canals, aqueducts and pipelines. This doesn’t include auxiliary plants, dams and canals operated by dozens of ancillary departments like the MWD or the Western Municipal Water District of Riverside County.

Taken as a whole, our state water project easily ranks among the greatest engineering marvels of the world. It moves water from the Northern part of our state where 80% of it is generated by rain and snow, and moves it to the Central and Southern part of the state where 80% is consumed by farming, industry and population.

No look at today’s water story would be complete without a look at its history and an examination of its future. The first stop on our trek was the Jensen Filtration Plant north of Los Angeles. While this was our first stop, it is actually among the final stops for water coming down from Northern California – winding up here to measure how much of the contracted allotment is actually being delivered at any given time and to start the filtration and purification process that cleanses the water of impurities gleaned from its cross-state journey. From here the water is diverted across the Southland to be managed by a multitude of agencies contracting for this resource.

From the backlot of the Jensen Plant, one can look across the hills to where the first Los Angeles Aqueduct carves down the Newhall Pass. Dedicated on November 5, 1913, visitors can view the point where William Mulholland stood while declaring “There it is. Take it”. It was a brief speech by political standards but the accompanying picture of water gushing into the LA basin was promptly forwarded to Wall Street and a massive infusion of investment and population soon followed the infusion of water, quickly outstripping the meager supply provided from the Owens Valley and setting off the water wars of the 1920’s that continue to this day.

A second stop this day brought us to the Edmonston Pumping Plant. Now you might think that water starting clear up at the top of the state would just run easily to the bottom of the state - but only if you are geographically challenged. There are several areas where the water has to run uphill for awhile before it can resume its race to our sprinklers and none so impressive as getting through the hills above Tehachapi.

We were the first group to tour the Edmonston Plant since 9/11 and what an impressive facility it is. Water entering the facility is forced by a series of massive pumps nearly 2,000 up a steep slope to crest the divide from where it can resume its leisurely gravity flow. It is no small feat of engineering and design to force millions of tons of water nearly ½ mile straight up nor is it surprising that this facility alone is one of the largest consumers of electrical power in the state. It’s not cheap to run.

Days 2 & 3 to follow.

Gene Wunderlich - Selling Southwest California Homes including Temecula, Murrieta & The Southern California Wine Country

Remember, Don't wait to buy real estate - Buy real estate and wait.