The tagline, which often appears with the new logo, is
“Clean water. Healthy environment. Flood protection.” It
reflects Valley Water’s five “priorities in action,” namely:
• Ensure A Safe Reliable Water Supply
• Reduce Toxins, Hazards, and Contaminants in
Our Waterways
• Protect Our Water Supply from Earthquakes
and Natural Disasters
• Restore Wildlife Habitat and Provide Open Space
• Provide Flood Protection to Homes, Businesses,
Schools, and Highways
Written By Larry J. Mickartz
T
he Santa Clara Valley Water District, founded in 1929,
is the largest multi-purpose water supply, watershed
stewardship and fl ood management special district in
California. Locally the Gavilan Water district merged with
the Santa Clara Valley Water District in 1987.
This name is a mouthful and while it will remain the
legal name, the water district’s new brand name is Valley
Water. Actually “Valley Water” has been the unofficial
moniker for a while, but now it is legit, along with a
great new logo.
Kudos to Valley Water for engaging its inhouse staff to
develop the new branding. Too often public agencies go
outside and pay big bucks for this work!
The new logo of Valley Water communicates the mission
of the organization. A recent press release sums it up:
“The top of the drop evokes the valley’s mountain peaks,
while the swoosh in the middle represents our local streams.
The blue at the bottom reminds us of the groundwater beneath
our feet, a critical component of our water supply. Moreover, in
addition to our traditional blue, the inclusion of a green color
better represents Valley Water’s environmental stewardship
mission, which includes watershed protection, habitat
restoration and pollution prevention.”
82
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
Since its founding in 1929, the water district has been
responsible for providing safe, clean water; flood protection;
and stewardship of local streams. In order to do this, the
water district imports water, stocks ground water and
maintains ten reservoirs. It also maintains treatment plants
and a laboratory to test water purity, and strives to maintain
local creeks, rivers and waterways. Use of water is tied to
conservation, which is also a major objective of Valley Water,
along with flood protection.
The complex programs and initiatives of Valley Water
in support of its goals are overseen by a Board of Directors
representing the seven districts in Santa Clara Valley. Valley
Water serves the water needs of 1.9 million local residents.
Our local District 1 representative is John Varela of Morgan
Hill. Norma Camacho is the CEO of Valley Water and is
responsible for a budget exceeding $500 million and around
800 employees.
Three issues of particular relevance and interest to local
residents include: the seismic retrofit of Anderson Dam, the
proposed new Pacheco Reservoir, and maintaining affordable
water rates for agriculture.
The Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project is a major
project the timetable of which has been extended by
complications from recent drought years. Plans are moving
ahead at this time for construction to start in 2022. The
entire project will entail major modifications to the dam
itself, the spillway, the outlet pipe, and the surrounding
area. The end result will be a safer dam with major storage
capabilities. Anderson Dam is the largest of all the existing
reservoirs in the Valley Water district. At capacity it can hold
89,278 acre feet of water. However, due to seismic safety
concerns it is currently limited to 52 percent of capacity.
Valley Water recently held a community meeting to
provide an update on the project, with additional meetings
planned in the future. More information is available at Valley
Water Anderson Dam Retrofit.
The second major Valley Water project of interest to locals
is the proposed expansion of the Pacheco Reservoir. This
project would transform the small existing reservoir (6,000
acre-feet) into a much larger water storage facility (140,000
acre-feet). The Pacheco Reservoir is located off Highway 152
about 13 miles southwest of the San Luis Reservoir.
june/july 2019
gmhtoday.com