A New Vision for Water Management
February 24, 2022In 2018, voters throughout LA County demonstrated their commitment to addressing urban runoff by overwhelmingly passing Measure W. This parcel tax provides approximately $280 million per year for multi-benefit stormwater projects via the Safe Clean Water Program (SCWP). LA Waterkeeper played a lead role in the OurWaterLA coalition, which helped shape, pass, and implement the Program.
To date, the SCWP has directed nearly $646M funding to multi-benefit stormwater projects and studies that improve the health of local waterways and make the region more climate-resilient by treating and reusing runoff to enhance local water supplies and green our communities. The Program has been a great success so far, but there is the belief that it can and should be enhanced to maximize benefits to our waterways and communities. Recognizing the need for adaptive management in programs of this scale, the SCWP intentionally incorporated systems for oversight, review, and program improvement.
A sign of collaboration. Photo by Cytonn Photography
Given the SCWP's enormous potential to improve the health of local waterways and make the region more climate-resilient, Accelerate Resilience L.A. (ARLA) formed a Working Group of "NGOs and municipalities to explore and analyze the benefits and tradeoffs of various Program and project implementation scenarios." The Working Group included nonprofits LA Waterkeeper, The Nature Conservancy, SCOPE LA, and representatives from the cities of Los Angeles, Lakewood, and Monrovia.
This group, facilitated by ARLA and supported by an impressive array of technical experts, worked together intensively for a year to assess the Program and develop recommendations for maximizing the benefits of the SCWP and a pathway to accomplishing its overarching goal. While nonprofit environmental advocates and cities haven't always seen eye-to-eye on how to achieve clean water goals, this effort led to increased trust and understanding between all parties as they worked collaboratively to ensure that the SCWP delivers on its mission.
“The SCWP is a down payment on Los Angeles County’s future resilience. ARLA commends the Working Group’s commitment to developing science-based, consensus-backed recommendations and believes the results from this process will be a pivotal contribution to inform SCWP implementation.”
The group established 22 near- and long-term recommendations. The recommendations range from improving metrics to make the Program more measurable, engaging the community better to understand local needs and desires, ensuring investments benefit historically underserved communities, and enhancing scoring criteria to assure all 14 SCWP goals are achieved, including promoting more nature-based and multi-benefit projects.
These recommendations came about by modeling a wide range of potential investment scenarios in a representative watershed and assessing the benefits and costs of each scenario.
The Working Group is now conducting outreach to the public and critical stakeholders in hopes that the proposed recommendations will be incorporated into interim guidance that is currently out for public comment. In addition, the Working Group hopes the remaining recommendations will be assessed as part of the Flood Control District's Metrics and Monitoring Study to evaluate countywide opportunities to maximize SCWP goals. Thanks to the Working Group's report, the County now has a valuable resource to help manage the SCWP.
“It’s always a delicate balance between the municipalities and the NGOs. I’m very proud of the work that was done here and that so many people came together to make it happen. The facilitated process has been a great journey.”
Read ARLA’S SCWP Working Group Report and Recommendations.