News Release Archive

Reclamation Announces Grants for WaterSMART Small-Scale Water Efficiency Projects in 15 States

Media Contact: Patti Aaron, 202-513-0544, paaron@usbr.gov

For Release: July 21, 2017

WASHINGTON –The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation announced today that it has selected 57 Small-Scale Water Efficiency Projects in 15 states to receive a total of $3.6 million as part of the WaterSMART grants program. The WaterSMART grants are leveraged with local and state funding to support $7.47 million in efficiency improvements. "This funding provides essential tools for stretching limited water supplies by helping 57 communities conserve and manage them more efficiently,” said Secretary Ryan Zinke. “These grants are just part of the toolkit for bridging the gap between water supply and demand. Leveraging the grants helps boost state and local efforts to protect water supplies.”

Projects range from installation of automated systems to lining irrigation canals to purchasing water meters. They include a variety of innovations using the latest technologies in Advanced Metering Infrastructure, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) and other “smart” control and monitoring systems.

The 57 communities awarded grants are found in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Washington. The list of selected projects can be found at https://www.usbr.gov/watersmart/weeg/docs/2017/2017-7-21smallscaleawards1.pdf.

Small-Scale Water Efficiency Projects are part of Reclamation’s WaterSMART Program. The program aims to improve water conservation and sustainability, helping water resource managers make sound decisions about water use. The WaterSMART Program identifies strategies to ensure this generation and future ones will have sufficient amounts of clean water for drinking, economic activities, recreation and ecosystem health. To learn more, please visit www.usbr.gov/watersmart.

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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.