The Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency has announced it will extend its public comment period for the Saugus Aquifer Non-Time Critical Removal Action to March 19 and will host a second virtual public meeting on Thursday, March 4 at 4 p.m.

The meeting will provide community members with an additional opportunity to learn more about how the Agency is keeping its water safe for drinking water consumption by addressing the public health and environmental effects of hazardous substances that have been identified in the Saugus Formation Aquifer.

Installing treatment could allow the return of several wells to service.

This second meeting is part of the Agency’s public comment period ending March 19 on the Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis (EE/CA) document, as well as the associated Community Involvement Plan (CIP).

This is a required step in the process to implement further treatment and seek funding reimbursement from potentially responsible parties.

During the meeting, the team will provide an overview of project objectives and alternatives for removal of the hazardous substances.

The documents and virtual meeting details are available at www.yourSCVwater.com/removal-action.

“Our top priority is providing safe, reliable water for our customers and our community,” said SCV Water’s General Manager Matt Stone. “We welcome community input as we take steps to safeguard our water supply and protect the public health and the environment.”

A few of the primary goals of the EE/CA are to:

– Satisfy environmental review requirements for removal actions

– Identify the objectives of a removal action

– Provide a framework for evaluating and selecting alternative technologies

– Analyze the alternatives based on effectiveness, implementability and cost criteria

What is being proposed?

The EE/CA addresses the groundwater containing the hazardous substances perchlorate and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) entering four production wells (Saugus 1 and 2, V-201, and V205) under active pumping conditions and ensures that the water produced by these wells satisfy the requirements of the California State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Drinking Water.

Future response actions may be necessary to address the sources of the hazardous substances released to the Saugus Formation, and the migration pathways between the sources and SCV Water’s production wells.

Where to send comments or get more information

The public comment period will close at 5 p.m. on March 19. Comments can be submitted by one of the following methods and should include “Saugus Aquifer CIP, EE/CA Comment” in the subject line of your e-mail or letter.

All comments must be postmarked or e-mailed by March 19, 2021.

1. E-Mail. Send comments to: Jim Leserman, Senior Engineer SCV Water jleserman@scvwa.org

2. Hard Copy via U.S. Mail: Jim Leserman, Senior Engineer SCV Water 26521 Summit Circle Santa Clarita, CA 91350

Next steps

After the public comment period and public meetings, the agency will review all comments and address them in a Responsiveness Summary and then will issue an Action Memorandum, which authorizes and initiates the removal action process.

More information and resources A public notice regarding this project was published in the Signal on Jan. 26 and Jan. 30.

In addition, the agency is providing the community with information via its e-newsletter, social media and its website. Copies of the proposed documents and a comprehensive fact sheet are available at www.yourSCVwater.com/removal-action.

About SCV Water: The Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency (SCV Water) is a full-service regional water agency located in the Santa Clarita Valley. It provides water service to approximately 74,000 business and residential customers. It was formed on January 1, 2018, when local water suppliers combined into one integrated, regional water provider. More information can be found at www.yourSCVwater.com