Ventura County : Federal Aid Sought for 3 Water Projects
Ventura County officials are asking the federal government to help curtail water-driven threats to the county’s agricultural, fishing and tourist industries.
Water, the coastal county’s economic and recreational lifeblood, is the focus of several initiatives before Congress. If all are approved, the total cost would be about $7 million.
The costliest of the initiatives is the Ventura Port District’s $6.45-million plan to reduce the rough, 12- to 14-foot waves and the gradual shoaling at the harbor’s entrance that have capsized or damaged more than 60 vessels since 1982 and required annual dredging.
Other proposed Ventura County water projects include a $500,000 flood-warning system for the Santa Clara River and the cleanup of a partly completed flood-control system at Santa Paula Creek, a tributary.
The federal government would pay for 80% of the Ventura Harbor project; the Ventura Port District would pick up the remaining $1.28 million.
None of the measures would address the city of Ventura’s most immediate water-related crisis: lack of it.
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