Source Water Protection Program
Our community’s water is sourced from the Truckee River which accounts for 80-85% of the water supply, and groundwater provides the remaining 15-20% from TMWA’s 90 production wells. Protecting these sources of supply is critical to ensure that the community has safe, high-quality water without increased water treatment costs.
TMWA has a robust Source Water Protection Program to improve and maintain regional drinking-water quality. The program received the American Water Works Association’s Exemplary Source Water Protection Award in 2022.
The Truckee River watershed is complicated in that it spans two states, multiple counties and cities, and very little land around the region’s sources of supply are owned by TMWA. Therefore, partnerships and collaborations are critical to the success of TMWA’s program, as described below.
Source Water Protection Initiatives
Middle Truckee River Watershed Forest Partnership
Due to TMWA’s reliance on surface water supplies, wildfire is a potential threat to water quality and reservoir storage capacity. To work towards mitigating wildfire threats, TMWA signed a memorandum of understanding in 2022 with the Tahoe National Forest, The Nature Conservancy, Truckee River Watershed Council, and National Forest Foundation (NFF) to form the Middle Truckee River Watershed Forest Partnership (MTRWFP). A catastrophic fire in this area of the watershed could have direct and prolonged water quality impacts to TMWA’s sources of supply.
The goal is to treat 62,000 acres of forested lands by 2033 with ecologically-based forest thinning and restoration methods. The partners have been working on planning and implementation and developed a 10-year vegetation plan. As a pilot project, TMWA helped fund the Ladybug Project near Stampede Reservoir. The project is being implemented by NFF and will treat approximately 3,000 acres of forested lands. For more information on specific projects, an interactive map is available on the MTRWFP website.
Forest Ambassador Program
TMWA’s Mt. Rose Water Treatment Plant opened in 2020 to treat water from Whites Creek to improve sustainable management of water resources in this portion of the service area. TMWA partnered with the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and the National Forest Foundation in 2022 to establish a Forest Ambassador Program in the watersheds upstream of the treatment plant. The Forest Ambassador spends time on the local trails educating recreators about responsible recreation, preventing wildfires, and the importance of protecting the region’s water supply.
Truckee River Fund
The Truckee River Fund was established by TMWA in 2004 and was one of the first components of TMWA’s source water protection efforts. This fund is used to support projects that protect and enhance the water quality or resources of the Truckee River and its watershed. The program allows TMWA to have a positive impact on the watershed in areas outside its direct jurisdiction. While it is not implementing the projects, TMWA is helping fund projects that might otherwise not happen without Truckee River Fund dollars. Since 2004, the Truckee River Fund has funded over 210 projects and distributed over $16 million to qualifying projects through grant awards. Partner organizations have provided over $26 million in cash and in-kind services.
One Truckee River Partnership Council
TMWA is an active partner in the One Truckee River Partnership Council whose mission is to work collaboratively to ensure a healthy, thriving, and sustainable river. In the urban area upstream of TMWA’s Glendale Water Treatment Plant, waste and litter can impact water quality. Due to this issue, TMWA became a key implementation partner in installing more restrooms along the river corridor. In 2020, the first Portland Loo was installed at Brodhead Park. In April 2023, a second Portland Loo was opened to the public at John Champion Park, and in June 2024, a third Portland Loo was opened at Reno City Plaza. These restrooms have been highly successful in reducing waste upstream of drinking water infrastructure and providing sanitation facilities for all river users.
Donner Interagency Partnership for Stewardship
Donner Lake is a critical water resource as one of TMWA’s primary storage reservoirs, as well as an important recreation area and tourist destination. During 2020 and 2021, visitation to the Donner Lake area drastically increased. With growing numbers of visitors came additional issues such as higher boat traffic, increased erosion, and more litter. To address these issues, multiple stakeholders, including TMWA, came together to form the Donner Interagency Partnership for Stewardship (DIPS). In June 2023, the collaborative published the 2022 State of Donner Lake to create a baseline dataset about the ecological and water quality conditions of Donner Lake. DIPS has also created the 2022 Stewardship Plan to identify action items to protect the long-term health of Donner Lake.
Source Water Protection Areas
A component of TMWA’s Source Water Protection Program is the 2020 Integrated Source Water and 319(h) Watershed Protection Plan for Public Water Systems and the Truckee River in the Truckee Meadows (2020 Plan). The 2020 Plan revolves around an online tool developed by the community to identify and map Source Water Protection Areas in Washoe County. This mapping facilitates project identification and implementation to preserve and improve the quality of the groundwater, lakes, rivers, springs, and streams that supply drinking water to the public. The website is regularly updated, at least on an annual basis, to include new source water protection areas and new projects.
Spill Response
TMWA is notified by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) when spills occur that could impact groundwater or surface water sources. TMWA closely monitors ongoing and active spill release sites overseen by NDEP and other local partners to prevent impacts to TMWA’s water supplies.
Tracking and Educating New Businesses
TMWA is notified when new activities are planned within critical distances of sensitive water infrastructure. This provides the opportunity for TMWA staff to educate those businesses about the location of drinking water sources. This cooperative process provides businesses with the information needed to take the measures required to help prevent future groundwater and surface water contamination. Businesses are contacted if they were located within a critical source water protection area and/or the business type was of particular concern for water quality
