Your Water is Our Promise: The CVWD Blog

The Board of Directors Sept. 27 recognized the retirement of Director of Finance Geoffrey Kiehl, who thanked the board for his four years of service. He lauded the importance of CVWD and its staff.

 “Working for CVWD was the capstone of my career,” he said.

The board also:

• Approved soliciting bids for a project to replace 350 feet of 12-inch dimeter concrete drain pipeline with polyethylene pipeline near the intersection of Avenue 68 and Hammond Road near Mecca. The Johnson Street Drain Improvement Project will also include installing nine manholes over a pre-existing agricultural drain line. Estimated cost is $572,000.
• Authorized the General Manager to seek a $2.45 million grant from the State Water Resources Board to update the Eastern Coachella Valley Water Supply Plan and to start planning consolidations of more small water systems.
• Approved purchase of one year of liability insurance for $630,000.

CVWD will offer nearly $6 million in conservation rebate programs in fiscal 2022-2023 thanks to an additional $3 million approved Sept. 13 by the Board of Directors.

Since July 1, CVWD has paid $650,000 to turf conversion program participants. An additional $2.2 million is reserved for approved projects. Those projects will replace about 950,000 square feet of turf with water-efficient landscaping.

Turf replacement rebates are $3 per square foot. The City of Rancho Mirage offers a matching rebate. CVWD customers who live in Rancho Mirage can realize a $6 per square-foot rebate.

In other action, the Board:

• Awarded a $255,889 construction contract to The Van Dyke Corp., Twentynine Palms, for repairs to a steel casing that carries water pipe along Lincoln Street, Mecca. 
• Approved a $60, 931,425 loan with US. Bureau of Reclamation for 10 Coachella Canal irrigation lateral replacement projects. 
• Approved a nonpotable water agreement with Tamarisk Country Club. Tamarisk will be connected to a new length of CVWD’s nonpotable distribution system planned for construction in summer 2024.

Approved a funding arrangement with the U.S. Geological Survey that maintains and operates stream-flow gauges in the Coachella Valley. The gauges measure stormwater and drainage flows to the Salton Sea, flows from the All American Canal to the Coachella Canal and groundwater quality from various wells. Total cost over five years is $766,455.

Temperature unlocks the key to gardening activities in late September, the start of an important planting season through early November. 

This 30- to 45-day period when regular daytime temperatures drop below 100 F is ideal for new plants to develop roots when the soil is warm before cooler air temperatures in late fall and winter slow plant growth.

Start by preparing your garden for fall planting by amending with compost and slow-release fertilizer. Replenish depleted and sparse mulch material.

Transplant deciduous and citrus container-grown plants while soil temperatures are still warm enough for rapid root growth. Plant spring-flowering perennials this month.

Fertilize citrus trees this month and water deeply before and after fertilizing. Once temperatures drop below 100 F, start adjusting how you water citrus and other fruit trees. Water deeply but not as often as in the summer months. 

Avoid pruning fruit trees this month but begin fertilizing roses. When temperatures dip below 100 F, prune roses lightly to remove dead or diseased canes.

As temperatures start to fall below 100 F, these tips from one low-desert planting guide will bring winter and spring gardens bursting with vegetables.  

• Early in the month (before Sept. 15), plant seeds of summer squash and beans.
• All month plant seeds of book choy, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chard, collard greens, cucumbers, endive, kale, kohlrabi, leaf lettuce, mustard, green onions, parsnips, radishes, rutabagas, spinach and turnips.
• After Sept. 15 plant transplants of broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celery and lettuce.
• After Sept. 15, plant potatoes, strawberries and beet and pea seeds. 

Sources: “Flower Planting Guide for the Low Desert,” by University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences; Growinginthedesert.com; “Lush and Efficient: Desert-Friendly Landscaping in the Coachella Valley,” by Coachella Valley Water District; “Month by Month Planting Guide for the Coachella Valley,” by Palm Springs High School Sustainable Garden Club.