Groundwater

Groundwater Basin

Groundwater produced from the Chino Groundwater Basin comprises approximately 75 percent of the Monte Vista Water District's water supply portfolio. This supply source is utilized to serve both retail customers and its wholesale customer, the city of Chino Hills.

The Chino Groundwater Basin is located in the Santa Ana Watershed and encompasses an area of approximately 235 square miles. The storage volume of the basin is 5 million acre-feet with the capacity to store an additional one million acre-feet. The safe yield of the basin is limited to 140,000 acre-feet per year, which maintains safe groundwater levels.

Groundwater lies in an underground water-bearing soil called an aquifer and originates from rain, snow, and irrigation system return flows. Over the years, water will percolate through the soil, which acts as a large filter. It is then pumped from the ground through production wells, disinfected with chlorine and distributed to reservoirs and pipeline systems for use by customers.

Production Wells

The District operates 13 active groundwater production wells, four of which are Aquifer Storage and Recovery Wells. The total well capacity is 31.2 million gallons per day.