In April OC San and our partner agency, the Orange County Water District (OCWD) celebrated the final completion of the Gorundwater Replenishment System (GWRS).

This was a huge milestone for both agencies, allowing OC San to recycle 100 percent of the reclaimable flow.

In 2008, OC San and Orange County Water Districts (OCWD) started the new Groundwater Replenishment System (GWRS) reclaiming 70 million gallons of water daily (MGD). This was treated water from OC San’s Plant No. 1 in Fountain Valley that was sent to GWRS to undergo a three-step advanced treatment process for indirect potable reuse.  In 2015 the two agencies expanded the reclamation efforts to reclaim up to 100 MGD of Plant No. 1’s effluent, making it the world’s largest recycling facility of its kind. The system was also planned for a second and final expansion to produce up to 130 MGD of recycled water.

However, with all of Reclamation Plant No. 1’s effluent already routed to GWRS, the challenge was where to get additional water for the final expansion.

Much thought, research, planning, and prepping resulted in the decision to take flow from Plant No. 2 in Huntington Beach. The challenge was figuring out a way to separate or split Plant No. 2’s reclaimable and non-reclaimable flows. Non-reclaimable flow contains a high brine concentration that not suitable for recycling. By capturing Plant No. 2 reclaimable flow, it would allow for a total production of up to 130 MGD (enough water to meet the needs of 1 million people).

Several construction projects were needed to make this happen. In early December OC San officially separated or split the reclaimable from non-reclaimable flow. And this week, OC San officially began sending flow to OCWD.  While there is still more work to do, this is something to celebrate! The ratepayers of Orange County will soon benefit from an additional 30 MGD of potable water!

To learn more about GWRS visit www.ocwd.com/gwrs.