Water Reuse and the Future of San Diego

by Councilman Scott Peters
November 2003

Very soon I and other leaders from our region are going to need your input to help solve the most important crisis faced by San Diego. I am not talking about a pension crisis or the site selection of an airport. I am talking about the fact that our region is overly dependent on a source of water that in almost ten years will have no further capacity available to allocate to growing areas like San Diego.

Almost ninety percent of San Diego’s water comes from imported sources such as the Colorado River. As most of you know, the Colorado River originates in western Colorado and flows through four states and hundreds of cities along its course to the Gulf of California. Much has been said about the overall quality of the river water once it reaches San Diego so I will leave out the gory details. But I think we can all agree that it is no longer pristine snow run-off by the time it has accepted the treated and untreated waste of the hundreds of thousands of people and animals living and recreating along its banks.

The good news is that since 1990, the City's conservation program has helped reduce the City's dependence on imported water. Today, the program saves approximately 20,000 acre feet of potable (drinking) water a year, which is enough to meet the water needs of 40,000 typical families for a year. Unfortunately, as our region continues to grow and our demand for water increases by an estimated twenty-five percent by the year 2030, our primary water resource will no longer be able to provide additional capacity.

In order to understand the issue and possible solutions, my colleagues and I directed the Water Department to conduct a Water Reuse Study to explore safe, cost-effective and technologically sound options for expanding our water supply. The five primary goals of the Study were to: (a) identify and develop opportunities for uses of recycled water that protect public health and safety, (b) identify and develop opportunities for recycled water that are cost-effective, environmentally sustainable and reflect public values through a fair and unbiased evaluation, (c) partner with residents, media, businesses, industries, organizations, schools, and government to assist public policy makers in making informed, value-based decisions on how to best use recycled water, (d) educate the public to expand the public’s awareness, knowledge and involvement, and present information in a way that is understandable and accessible to all San Diegans, (e) provide sound technical, environmental, and economic evaluations of the opportunities, with plans, to submit to the City Council for consideration.

With the study now completed, we will need the understanding, perspectives, and insights of City residents for any option to be successful when the City Council considers the report at the beginning of next year. I encourage you to visit the City’s Water Reuse Study site at www.sandiego.gov/water/waterreusestudy to acquaint yourself with the 2005 Interim Report and to stay informed about this issue in order to participate in the process to ensure a safe and adequate fresh water supply for the next 100 years.

Water supply and reliability will continue to be fundamental issues for our City and region as we investigate new sources of potable water. If you questions or issues about water please contact Tyler Sherer of my staff at tsherer@sandiego.gov.