Sweetwater Authority (Authority) was awarded with The Corky McMillin/Best of South County Award at the South County Economic Development Council’s 27th Annual Economic Summit on September 15. The award was presented to the Authority for the recent expansion and completion of the Richard A. Reynolds Groundwater Desalination Facility.
The Corky McMillin/Best of South County Award is presented to a local business that has a history of consistent excellence in products/services, customer satisfaction and overall performance, and is judged by colleagues and customers.
The completion of the Richard A. Reynolds Groundwater Desalination Facility is an example of technical innovation and commitment to providing South Bay customers with a sustainable source of water at a lower cost than importing water. The state-of-the-art facility allows the Authority to provide its customers with a reliable, drought-proof and cost-effective local water source. The facility was built in two phases in order to maintain affordability for Authority ratepayers.
The project’s innovative and sustainable design includes 2,950 ground-mounted solar photovoltaic panels as an alternative energy source. The solar array provides a solution for rising energy costs due to the doubling of the facility’s production capacity, as well as a reduction in the plant’s overall carbon footprint. The energy provided by the solar array is enough to fully power the facility during the peak generation portion of the day. The facility is named for former Authority general manager Richard A. Reynolds, who was the visionary for this project.
PHOTO: From left to right, Sweetwater Authority Governing Board Vice Chair Ron Morrison, with Sweetwater Authority’s General Manager Tish Berge, Project Manager Michael Garrod and Director of Engineering Ron Mosher with the Corky McMillin/Best of South County Award, presented to Sweetwater Authority for its recently expanded desalination facility that provides a drought-proof water supply for 18,000 families National City, Chula Vista and Bonita.