California Sustainability Plan for CWSRF

This report focuses primarily on ways in which the California CWSRF program -despite currently being able to efficiently process applications for funding- might attract more applicants with sustainable projects “…by better coordination with existing statewide sustainability initiatives, strategic outreach efforts, and incentives”. The following major ongoing initiatives in California are proposed to have room for growth in sustainability: The California Strategic Growth Council, California State Planning Priorities, California Water Plan, California Regional Blueprints and Sustainable Communities Strategies, and Integration of CWSRF Program With State Planning Activities. These are followed with suggestions for incorporating sustainable practices across California CWSRF applicants (for example, supporting existing communities by focusing on repairs and upgrades to existing infrastructure). The current state of the given 11 sustainability goals are then summarized, alongside implementation opportunities and examples of policies and best practices from other states. After analysis, rather than increasing requirements to discourage less-sustainable applicants from applying, the DFA plans to reduce administrative hurdles, reaching out to sustainably-minded communities to increase their participation in CWSRF opportunities for funding.