Recycled Water benefits, California

THE BENEFITS OF USING RECYCLED WATER:
It conserves drinking water,
It may benefit fish and other wildlife when less treated wastewater is discharged into—and less fresh water is diverted from rivers and other water bodies, and
It provides water for wetlands restoration.
In 1996, the Agency began to evaluate the potential for using recycled water in irrigation. The Agency has worked closely with agricultural and environmental groups, cities, towns, and districts to evaluate the potential for a recycled water distribution system that would link the reclamation systems operated by four municipalities and two sanitation districts. These facilities currently produce between 30,000 and 40,000 acre-feet of recycled water per year, a significant source for agricultural and municipal use. Of this, approximately 15,000 acre-feet are currently reused for urban and agricultural irrigation, with the remainder discharged during the winter into the Petaluma River, San Pablo Bay, or the Russian River and its tributaries. With the proposed construction of additional reservoirs, recycled water could instead be stored and used for agricultural and municipal irrigation, thereby reducing demand on the overall water supply system, enhancing the quality of surface waters, and contributing to the recovery of threatened fish and wildlife.

The Agency is currently studying water reuse systems that could be constructed in its service area to irrigate large landscaped areas with recycled water. The Agency's study will consist of (1) reviewing existing water reuse studies prepared by the water contractors, (2) identifying water reuse sites in areas where no previous water reuse studies have been performed, (3) estimating the reduction in peak water demands that are possible through water reuse, and (4) assessing construction costs associated with potential water reuse systems.