Think of it as water in the bank for not-so-rainy days.

To help bolster reserves, the City of Roseville and Placer County Water Agency (PCWA) recently amended their longstanding water agreement to allow Roseville to purchase and “bank” more water during “wet” years.

“This change in our water contract is a big step toward making sure we always have enough water,” said Roseville Mayor Bruce Houdesheldt. “With our partnership with PCWA and our agreement with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation for federally supplied drinking water (from Folsom Reservoir), we can make sure our residents and businesses have the water they need.”

That additional water will be stored in the region’s vast underground aquifers for Roseville’s use as needed.

“We’re able to supply them with extra water to put in the ground; that’s important as an insurance policy,” explains Andy Fecko, PCWA general manager. “(Roseville’s) water supply becomes more reliable. They can take water in wet years and save it for dry years.”

This amendment continues a strong partnership between Roseville and PCWA, says Sean Bigley, Assistant Environmental Utilities Director for the City of Roseville. “Over many, many decades, we have been close partners with the Placer County Water Agency. Our recent contract amendment allows us to continue to provide reliable water for the Roseville community for now and into the future.

“It’s really about securing our water future here in Placer County and the City of Roseville,” Bigley adds. “It allows us to assure we have a secure and reliable water supply.”

Roseville and PCWA have been water partners for nearly 60 years, since before PCWA finished its Middle Fork Project and the construction of two large reservoirs – Hell Hole and French Meadows. Located 10 miles west of Lake Tahoe on the Rubicon River, Hell Hole can hold more than 208,000 acre feet of water. On the Middle Fork of the American River, French Meadows has a capacity of nearly 135,000 acre feet. Between the two, the reservoirs hold enough water for more than 680,000 homes – plenty for Placer County, which has 405,000 residents including Roseville, Granite Bay and Rocklin.

Roseville gets the bulk of its water from Folsom Reservoir through its agreement with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Its water agreement with PCWA provides a needed and valuable cushion.

“Our (Middle Fork) Project produces more water upstream (from Folsom Reservoir),” says Fecko. “Roseville requires that for its growing community. It’s critical to Roseville’s future.”

In 1989, the City of Roseville and PCWA entered into their initial contract to interconnect their water systems. Under their agreement, Roseville can annually buy 30,000 acre feet of water from PCWA. That’s enough water to supply 60,000 homes.

The new amendment, signed in May, gives Roseville the right to buy another 14,000 acre feet – enough for 28,000 homes – but only in wetter years. This condition preserves the amount of water in the American River during times of drought. That’s good for fish, wildlife and recreational use of the river.

“This agreement doesn’t increase the total amount of water we remove from the river under our water rights,” Fecko says. “We balance our need for water with what’s good for the ecosystem.”

Storing water underground makes sense, Fecko adds. “A healthy aquifer helps us all from a regional perspective. The geology of this area is just like a sponge; it can soak up and store a lot of water. That water is there for you and the quality is really good. It doesn’t evaporate; it’s there forever. … It’s a big drought buffer a lot of other regions would love to have.”

Like having money in the bank, that extra water offers peace of mind while also allowing room for growth.

Says Bigley, “Groundwater banking is all about diversification of our water supply so we can fulfill the needs of our community into the future.”