Recycled Water May Ease Drought Effect

Movie producers in search of water to make those rainy scenes look wet enough don’t need to worry anymore. Homeowners yearning to wash off their sidewalk and patios can rest easy.

Beginning this week, individuals or businesses who comply with a strict set of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power guidelines will be able to buy and use an unlimited supply of recycled water that has been treated at sewage plants.

Because of the drought, DWP officials said they wanted to make the reclaimed water available during the summer months. “We would really like to encourage people to think of reclaimed water as something they can use,” DWP Commissioner Dorothy Green said.

The water can be picked up by truck at the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in the Sepulveda Basin or at the Los Angeles-Glendale Water Reclamation Plant near Griffith Park.

The recycled water is different from “gray water,” household water reused after showering or washing. The water being offered by the DWP is sewage water that has been treated three times to remove pollutants and harmful chemicals.

The water is not safe for human consumption and cannot be used in swimming pools or spas, officials said.

County health officials say uses for the recycled water include landscape irrigation, dust control, soil compaction, street sweeping, graffiti removal and firefighting. The water can also be used for car washing, decorative fountains or as drinking water for non-dairy animals.

However, users must comply with a long list of requirements, Green said. They must submit an application and enroll in a DWP training program to learn the proper uses for the water.

“We hope it’s a good response to this program,” she said, adding that if there is a large demand, more facilities will offer the water.

Green said the department expects about 100 acre-feet of water per year would be used by the program’s participants. There are 326,000 gallons in one acre-foot, enough to supply an average family of five for about 18 months, according to water officials.

The price of the reclaimed water includes a flat service rate of $50 per month and a commodity charge of 94 cents per 1,000 gallons. That is 80% of freshwater summer rates, officials said.

“I think people will take advantage of it,” Green said. “It’s part of getting into the habit of dealing with this drought.”