Recycled Water: A Reliable New Resource

Recycled water is a renewable resource that supplements potable water supplies. It is sustainable, readily available and reliable, even in drought.

Recycled water is a cost-effective way of sustaining water resources and results in fewer greenhouse gasses, and has a lower carbon footprint than many potable water supplies.

Recycling follows Mother Nature's lead in purifying water but accelerates it with treatment to remove impurities and put it back to the high quality where it can be used for beneficial purposes. These uses include irrigation for golf courses, parks, schools, medians, industrial purposes such as cooling machinery, street cleaning, fire fighting and groundwater recharge.

Recycled water is already used extensively throughout the state. Southern California has been a pioneer in the use of recycled water since 1927. Near the Foothill service area, Glendale, Burbank and Los Angeles use recycled water for a variety of purposes including irrigation of freeway landscaping. Locally, the La Canada Country Club has been using recycled since the early 1960's to water its golf course.

Increasing the Supply of Local and Reliable Recycled Water

The Foothill Municipal Water District is proposing to develop recycled water in three phases; one near the Arroyo, one more towards the westside of the service area in Pickens Canyon and the other towards the eastside in Eaton Canyon.

The recycled water would be used for irrigation of large landscapes, such as CalTrans medians, parks and sports fields, as well as recharging groundwater basins.

Detailed studies already are underway on how this would be accomplished.