The Cadiz Valley Groundwater Storage Project is  designed to provide Southern California with an increase in water supply during droughts, emergencies, or other periods of need.

The Project would store surplus water imported from the Colorado River Aqueduct in the aquifer system that underlies a potion of our Cadiz Valley property in eastern San Bernardino County.  As needed, the stored water would be withdrawn and returned to the Colorado River Aqueduct for distribution within the service area of a participating water agency. 

The Project would have the capacity to import water from the Colorado River Aqueduct and return water to the Colorado River Aqueduct at a rate of approximately 150,000 acre-feet per year.  Over a sequence of years, the Project would have the capacity to store a total of approximately 1.0 million acre-feet of imported Colorado River water.  (An acre-foot is equivalent to the amount of water utilized by two families of four.)

In times of drought or other emergencies, when previously stored water is not available, the Cadiz Project could also provide supplies of indigenous water.   Subject to limitations by a governing groundwater management plan, participants in the Project would be able to withdraw indigenous groundwater from the aquifer system for use within their service area. 

The Cadiz Project is one of the few potential water storage projects for Colorado River resources on the planning horizon. The Project is designed to improve the management and conservation of Southern California’s allocations of Colorado River water by:

·          capturing water that would otherwise be lost during wet years;

·          increasing available supplies during droughts, emergencies, or other periods of need;

·          providing an alternative to surface reservoirs, thereby reducing evaporative losses, environmental impacts, and infrastructure costs.

Southern California’s population is expected to grow 35% to nearly 50 million people by 2030.  Without additional water storage, the demand for water in many Southern California communities will exceed supply.

What is the status of the Project?

The Cadiz Project was first proposed in 1997 as a partnership between Cadiz Inc. and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (Metropolitan), the region’s largest water wholesaler. Following extensive environmental analysis over four years, a Final Environmental Impact Report/ Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) was issued for the Project in 2001.

In late summer 2002, the U.S. Department of the Interior approved the Final EIS for the Project and authorized necessary permits for the construction, operation and maintenance of the Project’s pipeline and related facilities.  However, in October 2002, Metropolitan decided not to proceed with the Project and chose not to consider the Project’s Final EIR.

Following Metropolitan’s decision, the Company continued discussions with Metropolitan  in an effort to resume the Project.  When settlement negotiations failed to produce a resolution, in November 2005, Cadiz filed a lawsuit against Metropolitan seeking recovery of damages. 

In 2006, the Company decided to pursue the Cadiz Project independent of Metropolitan and complete the environmental review process. 

Later that year, San Bernardino County advised Cadiz that it would review the Project’s existing and updated environmental documents according to CEQA as part of a permit application process.  Cadiz filed a technical memorandum and numerous permit applications with the County in early 2007.  The County deemed those applications complete in August 2007 and is preparing the schedule for review.

Since 2002, several parties have expressed interest in purchasing, joint venturing, or otherwise partnering with Cadiz Inc. to implement the Project.  We are currently in    discussions with various potential Project participants.  

"By providing storage of surplus Colorado River water, and the export of indigenous groundwater under specified conditions, the Cadiz Project will help ensure needed dry-year water supply reliability and will assist California in efficiently managing its water supplies. Future water supply needs in Metropolitan's Southern California service area, without implementation of the Cadiz Project, would substantially exceed demands by the year 2020. The public benefits of the Cadiz Project are compelling reasons for the Department of the Interior to cooperate to the greatest extent possible in assisting California in meeting its water supply goals." – U.S. Department of the Interior, Record of Decision, August 2002