Small California town neighboring Yuma faces drinking water challenges - Arizona's Family

California town near Yuma faces drinking water challenges

Small California town neighboring Yuma faces drinking water challenges

YUMA, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) - A $1.5 million grant from the USDA will help build a second water well for the town of Winterhaven, California.

The small township sits north of Interstate Eight, across from Yuma County. Residents in the town said if they want clean drinking water, they have to drive into Yuma to buy some because there are no stores besides two dispensary shops.

The town of Winterhaven only has one well that provides water to the people who live there, but that water isn’t exactly the best quality. “The water smells like rotten eggs,” said Greg Welch, a resident from the area.

“The water pressure is good; we always have water, but we only use it to shower or wash clothes,” said Carlota Melchor, a resident. Melchor has about ten 5-gallon water jugs that she fills up in Yuma. She said she uses that as drinking and cooking water.

The Winterhaven County Water District said they needed the USDA to step in. “The biggest struggle we’ve had is financially, we need to upgrade the water plant, upgrade a well,” said Rick Miller, the district’s manager.

Right now, one working well provides water to about 300 residents plus hundreds of snowbirds at a local RV park. “It’s really not that dangerous the levels we’re putting out, but it is aesthetically, it stains clothes, stains the faucets on the sink,” he said. “The biggest issue we have with the water here is it’s high in manganese, we try to filter most of it out,” said Miller.

He said the million-dollar grant from the USDA will go toward building a second well. Miller said the funding for the second well will allow them to dig deeper and hopefully improve the water slightly.

He said once they receive the USDA funding, it should only take 1-2 months to build the second well and that they’re looking into a different water source for Winterhaven long term. “We got hopes for some other funding that’s coming in, to improve the rest of the water quality , even better than what we can get from the well, maybe a new filtration system, new distribution system. That will help everything,” said Miller.

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