Should D.C. Be Doing More For Recycled Water?

Is Washington D.C. hampering the growth of the recycled water industry in the U.S.? Or is it simply staying out of the way so local and state government can take the lead in funding these projects?

“Amid one of the worst droughts in California’s modern history, the Obama administration this year asked Congress for $20 million for water recycling, to be spread across the entire 17-state West. That’s one-fifth the amount the administration targeted on livestock disaster assistance to California ranchers as part of its drought response, using funds under its discretion,” the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

That aim was to fund Bureau of Reclamation water reuse projects through Title 16. In 2014, an estimated 378,000 acre-feet of water was recycled through Title XVI projects, according to the feds.

But even the $20 million request, however, has not become easily available. “Tapping that puddle of money is proving difficult because of a Republican ban on earmarks, which will allow no member of Congress to authorize spending on a new recycling project,” the report said. “Administration officials said they are doing all they can with the money that Congress gives them, and that it is up to Congress to authorize new projects.”

Gary Darling, general manager of the sewer district Delta Diablo near San Francisco, said some recycled water projects are all ready to go if they could just get funded. He represents the Western Recycled Water Coalition, a group of water and sewer districts seeking federal assistance.

“Over half of our projects are shovel ready, they’ve got feasibility determinations and environmental clearances that are done, so we’re ready to go,” he said, per the report.

Many Republicans question whether federal outlays should play a big role in funding recycled water projects. “You can’t just say here’s a project, fund it,” said Matt Sparks, spokesman for House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-CA. “That’s an earmark, and that is exactly what we got rid of when we took the majority.”

Some water experts are frustrated that Washington is not doing more, according to the report. “In terms of water supply in the West,” said Joe Grindstaff, general manager of the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, “it would be more useful than a lot of other things they do.”

Not everyone on Capitol Hill is ambivalent toward water recycling. Rep. John Garamendi, D-CA, is a strong supporter. He noted that the feds spent “several billion dollars” on water systems in Afghanistan. “We make choices around here,” he said, per the report.

Despite a lack of federal help, state and local officials are pushing ahead on recycled water projects.

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, a massive water importer that serves Los Angeles, is talking to county sanitation districts about the possibility of building the largest direct potable reuse project in the world, the Los Angeles Times reported. Amid population growth and the historic drought, water importing no longer looks like a long-term solution for water challenges in that region.

“For more than 80 years, the Metropolitan Water District has paved the way for Southern California's epic growth by securing water from hundreds of miles away. [In late September], the mammoth agency said it wants to invest closer to home in what would be one of the world's largest plants to recycle sewage into drinking water,” the Times reported in a separate piece.

For all things water recycling, visit Water Online’s Water Reuse Solutions Center.