Eastern Municipal Water District

The 1960s and 1970s were a time of unprecedented growth in Riverside County. We learned a lot in our first decade and had established a strong foundation and procedures to continue expansion of our service, but we knew that we could not do it alone. As demand for service grew, we began meeting with our federal legislators for assistance. Finally, the Small Projects Act was passed, and we became the first municipality to receive a loan under this Act. With this loan, we constructed the biggest project we had to date, covering the largest area (Perris Valley), and it allowed us to put in the remainder of the backbone [supply] system that was necessary in that area. We are proud to continue those same efforts today because we recognized then as we do now, the importance of bringing tax dollars back to the community. #75FactsFor75Years #75YearsWithEMWD 💎

Happy #WorldWaterDay! Know that at EMWD, every day is World Water Day as our team works around the clock to provide the community with safe, reliable and quality water, wastewater, and recycled water services.

One of the many questions asked during our formation was how water would be distributed. Some areas had existing water companies or districts, or municipal systems that could simply buy water wholesale from us. But what about those areas not served by any existing agency? According to our pre-election brochure: “These ranches will have to do one of two things: (1) obtain this water through an existing water company by extension of its lines, or (2) group together to form a mutual water district to build the needed distribution facilities.” The original municipal water district law also allowed for the creation of what are called “improvement districts” within the larger district. The residents of these improvement districts could then vote to approve bond sales to finance construction of a local water system. We immediately saw the possibilities of this concept and were one of the first agencies to put the idea into practical use. #75FactsFor75Years #75YearsWithEMWD 💎

In the early 1950s, there was a drop in well water that struck many areas throughout western Riverside County. Unincorporated communities such as Romoland and Good Hope, which relied on well water from several small private water companies, could not support the communities much longer. Through a process that included buying out smaller, private water companies, maintenance of those bought out systems, and the planning and construction of new systems with limited staff support, we were able to begin bringing water and growing our service area. Former General Manager Don Stewart recalls the successful efforts of Eastern’s limited staff to complete these projects quickly: "This is where I think you can appreciate how we could operate." #75FactsFor75Years #75YearsWithEMWD 💎

Kicking off the week on a strong note as this morning we were honored at the #WateReuse25 Symposium with an Award for Excellence in Action for our French Valley Recycled Water Project, which significantly expanded recycled water use in the fast-growing French Valley community near Murrieta. The Award for Excellence is presented annually to agencies that develop forward-thinking projects and programs to advance recycled water use, policy, education, and innovation. This marks the fourth straight year that we have received a national award of excellence for our recycled water program and we are proud to be the first agency to hit this milestone. Thank you to the WateReuse Association for this honor, to our project partners, and to our staff for the continuous efforts to expand our recycled water program and increase water resiliency in our region.

We are at the annual #WateReuse25 Symposium and are proud to have our Water Resources Planning Manager John Wuerth on two panels that add insight on our collaborative strategies with potable and nonpotable reuse. We look forward to connecting and learning more about the future in water reuse.

A well deserved dedication for a true water champion. #ThankYouDirectorRecord

Our Spring 2025 e-Connect and Newsletter is out now! As we kick off our 75th anniversary in this issue, we explore easy bill paying options, landscape designs that are fire resistant, and more information on a customer survey to help us better serve our customers. Check it out ➡️ https://bit.ly/4hqsuO5

💧 We were honored to join Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District, Rancho Water and Western Municipal Water District last Friday at the Murrieta - Temecula Group to discuss local water issues impacting our region. The collaborative discussion was timely and important as we focus on serving our communities today and tomorrow. #RegionalCollaboration #CAWater

#75FactsFor75Years Throwback to 1952! This early EMWD well near Sanderson and Ramona Expressway helped return San Jacinto Tunnel seepage water to the valley. For 75 years, we’ve been committed to reliable water for our communities! #EMWD #75YearsWithEMWD💎