Recycled water may ease Calif. drought worries
By Hudson Sangree, Sacramento Bee
At two treatment plants in El Dorado Hills, millions of gallons of brown wastewater pour in every week, and millions of gallons of clean water pour out through purple pipes that irrigate the lawns of 4,000 homes.
Proponents call it water recycling. Critics call it “toilet-to-tap.” But as the drought has taken hold in California, opposition to the idea has been drying up, and recycled water is winning acceptance. It’s expected to be a significant source of landscaping and drinking water for many Californians in years to come.
Today, taxpayer money is flowing toward recycled water programs. As part of recent drought relief measures, the state allocated $200 million in grants to jump-start those efforts and slashed interest rates on $800 million more in loans.
In October, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill that requires state health and water officials to report by September 2016 on the feasibility of developing uniform standards for recycling wastewater for “direct potable reuse.” That means purified wastewater would flow straight to household faucets.
Be careful with that ‘recycled’ water. My mother-in-law got a scratch on her hand while gardening in dirt watered with their EID recycled water. It developed a horrible infection that took her months to clear up. It was really bad. Nasty.
STPUD used to recycle it’s water and it was pure, but the law would not allow treated waste water to be re-used in the Tahoe Basin and it had to be pumped out of the basin.At a very large cost for the pipeline. The water was pure and they even had a large Fish Tank in the Lobby of S.T.P.U.D. that was full of fish from the treated water. The farmers now use it for irrigation in the Carson Vally. It could be used for all of the Golf areas in the basin and save millions of gallons of water, but it comes at a price, the treatment process when the plant was built the cost to us was $29.00 a year to flush our toilets and now it is hundreds of dollars a year.
When the S.T.P.U.d. plant was built it was the most modern plant in the United States,
STPUD pays over $1 million per year for electricity to pump the treated waste water over Luther Pass. They also allocate $8 million per year to maintain the Luther Pass system and pay the farmers 1/2 million per year to accept the waste water. That is $9.5 million dollars per year leaving our community and a lot of usable water! All because of a law that was passed over 40 years ago when the world had different priorities. It is time to reevaluate the Porter Cologne act and how it applies to the LT basin.
Freel. Toilet to tap has a number of issues. First, people just don’t like the idea. Second, you have biological and pharmaceutical issues to deal with. Third. You are still dealing with a reverse osmosis technology.
The least expensive reverse osmosis technology I have heard of is out of Australia using Ocean water and wave action as a pump; Cost per gallon is .3 to .4 cents per gallon.
rock4tahoe- I am not suggesting toilet to tap for the Lake Tahoe Basin. I am suggesting treating the water to drinking water quality, just as STPUD previously did, then using the treated clean water to replenish ground aquifers through infiltration.