California's State Water Resources Control Board has released a draft report to explore the feasibility of developing regulations for direct potable reuse of recycled water.
After reviewing the recommendations of an Expert Panel and Advisory Group, formed as part of legislation that directed the State Water Board to investigate the feasibility of creating regulations for direct potable reuse (DPR), the State Water Board’s Division of Drinking Water has concluded it is feasible to begin the process of developing regulations. DPR regulations can be adopted provided that certain research and key knowledge gaps are addressed.
Direct potable reuse is the addition of recycled water directly into a public water system or into a raw water supply immediately upstream of a water treatment plant. No other state has yet developed regulations specifically for direct potable reuse.
The draft report is available now for comment under a 45-day public review period before finalization and presentation to the state Legislature by Dec. 31, 2016. In the draft report the Division of Drinking Water agrees with the expert panel that regulations for the direct potable reuse of recycled water are attainable.
The Division of Drinking Water believes that knowledge gaps and needed research remain to assure adequate public health protection.
State Water Board Chair Felicia Marcus said: “As we face a fifth year of record-breaking drought, and ongoing changes in our environment related to climate change – which could mean more droughts in our future — expanding our water resource options is a smart thing to do.
“We need to take a thoughtful and deliberate approach to diversifying and securing our long term water resilience. Today’s draft, focused on the feasibility of direct potable reuse, is one part of a multifaceted effort that includes a wide range of sources, including indirect potable reuse through groundwater recharge, surface water augmentation, storm water capture, and desalination.
"The release of today’s draft report is a historic step in bringing online a potential future source of potable water.”
The adoption of regulations related to the direct potable reuse of recycled water will not take place until the knowledge gaps are addressed and additional research is completed related to the protection of public health.
However, the development of the criteria for the use of DPR will go forward as the knowledge gaps are addressed and additional research is completed. Due to this ongoing process, a concrete timeframe on when regulations for the direct potable reuse of recycled water will be in place is currently not available.
Moving forward on the development of DPR, some of the Division of Drinking Water’s recommendations include:
1. Convene technical workgroups to assist in developing uniform water recycling criteria for direct potable reuse.
2. Convene a “blue ribbon” panel to review scientific literature and report on the current state of scientific knowledge regarding the risks of emerging contaminants to public health.
3. Develop new methods to evaluate the performance and reliability of DPR treatment.
4. Work with the Regional Water Quality Control Boards to include monitoring for pathogens in raw wastewater feeding potable reuse systems.
5. Develop more comprehensive analytical methods for unknown contaminants.
6. Address important implementation issues including:
– Training and certification of operators for potable reuse treatment facilities.
– Optimizing wastewater treatment plant performance to prepare for DPR.
– Enhancing source control programs designed to prevent or minimize discharges of toxic chemicals to sewer systems that feed into DPR treatment plants.
– Ensuring that agencies implementing DPR projects have adequate technical, managerial, and financial capacity to ensure the success and safety of the project.
With the population of California expected to grow from 38 million to 50 million by 2049, and continued changes in climate that challenge our current water supplies, creating sustainable water resources is a top priority, which is why Governor Brown created the Water Action Plan in 2014. Part of that plan is to increase the use of recycled water.