San Diego’s recent rainstorms was a much-needed boost to 24 reservoirs around the county.
“We talk about often as pennies from the sky and yesterday was millions from the sky,” smiled Carlos Quintero, the General Manager for the Sweetwater Authority.
Quintero said the Sweetwater Reservoir in Spring Valley collected about 1,700 acre-feet of water on Monday alone.
“That is about 10% of all of our water supply for one year in one day,” he beamed. “It was a big day.”
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Quintero added that the free water translates into saving for customers.
“Those water sources are cheaper. So, it really benefits the bottom line for our customers,” Quintero said.
Sweetwater Authority also owns the Loveland Reservoir. That one only receives water from rain and water runoff. Quintero said Loveland’s capacity was down to below 3% before the recent storms. As of Tuesday, it was above 12%.
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The City of San Diego owns four reservoirs that also solely rely on rain and water runoff. According to the city’s online water level report, those four reservoirs captured more than 6,000 acre-feet of water in the past month. That’s enough water for roughly 6,000 homes for a year!
However, Quintero warned that the recent storms do not resolve California’s drought issues.
“It is helpful, but it doesn’t solve all of our water problems,” he added.
