Water for People
Water infrastructure matters because of what it makes possible for people. Cadiz works with communities, water agencies, Tribes, and other partners to help make safe, reliable water available where it is needed across the West.
Water for People
Water infrastructure matters because of what it makes possible for people. Cadiz works with communities, water agencies, Tribes, and other partners to help make safe, reliable water available where it is needed across the West.
What Is the Mojave Groundwater Bank?
The Mojave Groundwater Bank is a public-private partnership among public water agencies, Native American Tribes, and Cadiz Inc., that will conserve, store, and deliver groundwater from a naturally recharging aquifer beneath Cadiz Ranch in California’s Mojave Desert to communities across the Southwest. The project is permitted to deliver 2.5 million acre-feet of new water supply over 50 years, an average of 50,000 acre-feet per year, enough for roughly 400,000 people. The project will also store up to 1 million acre-feet of imported water, using more than 300 miles of pipeline infrastructure, including a converted natural-gas line whose federal right-of-way the U.S. Bureau of Land Management approved in July 2026. Cadiz estimates the aquifer holds over 30 million acre-feet of water in storage, a volume the company compares to Lake Mead and Lake Powell combined; the permitted withdrawal of 2.5 million acre-feet over 50 years is a small fraction of that total. Its financing is led by Lytton Rancheria of California, making it the first large-scale, tribal-owned water infrastructure project off tribal lands in U.S. history.
This guide explains the project and points to where its supply, sustainability, environmental review, community agreements, and governance are covered in depth.
2.5 Million acre-feet of new water supplies
400,000 people served annually
How Does the Mojave Groundwater Bank Conserve Water?
The Mojave Groundwater Bank captures fresh groundwater at the Fenner Gap before it reaches the desert’s dry lakes, where it would turn to brine ten times saltier than the ocean and evaporate. Rain and snow falling across a watershed of more than 2,000 square miles percolate underground and flow slowly toward the Bristol and Cadiz Dry Lakes at the basin’s low point, where measured studies put the loss at roughly 31,590 acre-feet of water every year.
The project’s wellfield, positioned in the Fenner Gap where that underground flow converges, intercepts the water while it is still fresh and moves it into California’s existing water network. In its storage phase, the bank works in reverse: up to 1 million acre-feet of surplus water from wet years can be banked underground for dry years, and unlike a surface reservoir, none of it is lost to evaporation. That wet-to-dry cycle is the management tool a Southwest hydrology swinging harder between extremes needs. The full mechanism is covered in how the aquifer recharges.
Who Owns the Mojave Groundwater Bank Project?
Cadiz, Fenner Gap Mutual Water Company and the Fenner Valley Water Authority, in partnership with Native American Tribes, public agencies and water districts will construct, own, and operate the Mojave Groundwater Bank. The public-private partnership represents a landmark collaboration with Native American Tribes to build the first large-scale, tribal-owned water infrastructure project off tribal lands in U.S. history.
What the Mojave Groundwater Bank Delivers
Each commitment below is covered in a dedicated article; the summaries here show the shape of the record.
- Sustainable supply: San Bernardino County approved, and the California Court of Appeal upheld in 2016, a safe-yield cap of 2.5 million acre-feet over 50 years, enforced under a Groundwater Management, Monitoring and Mitigation Plan with authority to curtail or stop pumping. Five years of monitoring data (2019-2023) show stable groundwater levels, stable water quality, and no land subsidence. See the articles on the safe-yield cap, aquifer recharge, and monitoring data.
- Community benefit: Cadiz has dedicated 25,000 acre-feet of supply to disadvantaged communities in San Bernardino County under an agreement with the County, and 5,000 acre-feet per year for 50 years at no cost to the Salton Sea Authority and the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians. See the articles on disadvantaged-community agreements and the Torres Martinez agreement.
- Complete review: The project completed full California Environmental Quality Act review in 2012, upheld by California courts at trial and on appeal, and the federal pipeline conversion completed National Environmental Policy Act review in 2026. See the articles on the court rulings, the federal review, and the wildlife and air-quality record.
- Independent oversight: A three-member Technical Review Panel, the Fenner Valley Water Authority, and San Bernardino County share oversight and enforcement. See the articles on the Technical Review Panel and the Fenner Valley Water Authority.
- Regional reach: A 2026 memorandum of understanding secures up to 10,000 acre-feet per year to the Central Arizona Irrigation and Drainage District, which serves 87,600 irrigated acres in Pinal County, through an interstate exchange of Colorado River water. See the article on Arizona supply.
Project Roadmap
Building for What Comes Next
Reliable water gives communities the confidence to plan, grow, and invest in their future. Cadiz is advancing the supply, treatment, infrastructure, and partnerships that can help make that possible for generations to come.
All Mojave Groundwater Bank Articles
Explore the questions, activities, and partnerships behind reliable water access.
Where the Project Stands
The Mojave Groundwater Bank enters construction with its core approvals in place: county-adopted and court-validated water rights covering 2.5 million acre-feet, a certified environmental impact report, a federal right-of-way for the Northern Pipeline, a county-approved groundwater management plan with an operating Technical Review Panel, and first-tranche project financing led by a federally recognized tribe.
FAQ
How much will the Mojave Groundwater Bank cost to build?
Construction of the current project is estimated at approximately $800 million, funded through an equity raise led by Lytton Rancheria of California and project financing that includes a pending federal WIFIA loan application of up to 94 million.
How much water can the project deliver?
The project is permitted to deliver 2.5 million acre-feet over 50 years, an average of 50,000 acre-feet per year, enough for roughly 400,000 people, and to store up to 1 million acre-feet of imported water in a second phase.
How much has Lytton Rancheria committed to the Mojave Groundwater Bank?
Lytton Rancheria of California committed up to $51 million under a definitive agreement executed in October 2025, the first tranche of approximately $450 million in total equity being raised through Mojave Water Infrastructure Company, LLC.
Did courts review the project’s environmental impact report?
Yes. The Final Environmental Impact Report was certified in 2012, upheld by San Bernardino County Superior Court in 2014, and sustained by the California Court of Appeal in Center for Biological Diversity v. County of San Bernardino, 247 Cal. App. 4th 326 (2016).
Which Arizona water district has agreed to receive water from the Mojave Groundwater Bank?
The Central Arizona Irrigation and Drainage District, which serves approximately 87,600 irrigated acres in Pinal County, signed a memorandum of understanding in July 2026 for up to 10,000 acre-feet per year, the first such agreement with an Arizona water district.