LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESS Newswire / June 18, 2025 / In a historic step toward solving the American Southwest’s water crisis, Cadiz, Inc. is advancing development of the Mojave Groundwater Bank, a first-of-its-kind infrastructure project that combines environmental innovation, tribal partnership, and water equity to address the region’s growing demand for clean, sustainable water.

Announced in October 2024, the project will construct, own, and operate a water storage and delivery system capable of moving and banking up to 2.5 million acre-feet of water-enough to supply millions of people over the coming decades. The Mojave Groundwater Bank is located at the base of a 2,000-square-mile watershed in California’s Mojave Desert, where a naturally replenished aquifer holds an estimated 30-50 million acre-feet of groundwater-more than what’s currently stored in both Lake Mead and Lake Powell combined.

“This isn’t just a water project-it’s a blueprint for climate adaptation and social equity,” said Susan Kennedy, CEO of Cadiz. “For too long, infrastructure investments have bypassed the communities most vulnerable to water insecurity. We’re changing that-using smart technology, unused pipelines, and deep partnerships with Tribal Nations to build a system that works for everyone.”

The Mojave Groundwater Bank is the largest water infrastructure project in the Southwest in decades and the first large-scale project of its kind led in partnership with Tribal Nations off tribal lands. The Lytton Rancheria Tribe of Northern California was the first to commit investment, pledging up to $50 million toward the project. Additional Tribal Nation collaborations are in progress, creating a unique ownership model that helps ensure long-term access and equity for historically excluded communities.