Proposition 204 Drainage Reuse Grant Program
The Drainage Reuse Grant Program provides funds to local public agencies, including public universities, in the state of California for research and/or programs that resolve agricultural subsurface drainage water issues. The program encourages development of methods of using subsurface drainage, reducing its toxic elements, and concentrating, separating and utilizing its salts. Examples of research and technical study projects that could be funded by this grant program include, but are not limited to, those that:
- Develop methods to reuse drainage water,
- Optimize irrigation methods for source reduction,
- Investigate or develop salt tolerant plant species,
- Analyze market opportunities for harvested salts, and
- Develop drainage treatment and salt separation technologies.
Funding for this program comes from Proposition 204 through the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). With the approval of Proposition 204 by California voters in 1996, any unallocated funds remaining in the Agricultural Drainage Water Account of the 1986 Water Conservation and Water Quality Bond Law (Proposition 44) were transferred to a drainage management sub-account and were to be continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, to CDFA. In September 1997, representatives of the CDFA, DWR, and the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to transfer the funds from the drainage management sub-account, as well as the responsibility for implementing the programs required by the legislation, to DWR.
Previous rounds of grant funding of the Drainage Reuse Grant Program have resulted in the completion of more than 40 research and technical study projects. With the Proposition 204 funds (through a reimbursement agreement with California Department of Food and Agriculture), the Drainage Reuse Grant Program has facilitated completion of projects within the following categories:
- Drainage Reuse
- Drainage Treatment
- Salt Separation & Utilization
- Source Reduction
Final funding recommendations for the 2014 solicitation of the Drainage Reuse Grant Program are listed below:
|
Agency |
Proposal Title |
Funded Amount |
|
The Regents of University of CA, UC Merced |
An Efficient Solar Thermal-Powered Evaporation System for Salt Harvesting |
$191,936 |
|
Panoche Drainage District |
$298,240 |
|
|
Panoche Drainage District |
$204,960 |
|
|
California State University, Fresno Foundation |
$258,390 |
|
|
California State University, Fresno Foundation |
$298,641 |
|
|
The Regents of University of CA, UC Los Angeles |
$300,000 |
|
|
California State University, Fresno Foundation |
$299,528 |
|
|
Panoche Drainage District |
Ultra-High Recovery Solar Thermal Desalination of Agricultural Drainage Water |
$300,000 |
|
Total |
|
$2,151,695 |