At the September 12th BWD Board Meeting, a review of the selection process and schedule for the planned installation of Automated Metering Infrastructure (AMI) occurred. On December 7, 2022, the BWD entered into a Grant Agreement with the State of California Department of Water Resources for a Sustainable Groundwater Management Act Implementation Grant in the amount of $1,145,000 for an AMI system at BWD.

BWD currently reads 2,100 meters per month manually. Monthly meter reads creates the potential where leaks may for run for days or even weeks before being detected. In addition, long water service lines and sandy soils create a scenario where leaks can run without being visible. AMI systems store and transmit data to BWD on a daily basis or more frequently depending upon the Vendor. The information generated by the AMI system will be a very useful tool going forward to identify and repair leaks on the customer side of the meter, which will lead to direct savings to the customer and decreased water loss in the Basin. Each customer will also have the ability to continuously monitor individual water use thru the system.

Components of the selection process include a Pilot Study, also referred to as the Alpha and Beta Phases and will conclude with AMI Implementation for Remaining Customers, also referred to as the Full Deployment Phase. Outreach and Education is also being planned. Completion of the Project must be done by March 2025.