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Water Recycling Expansion Program

Proposed Program Critical to Meeting Water Demand

The City is the Lead Agency for an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) being prepared for the Water Recycling Expansion Program, located within the City of Petaluma and nearby lands within Sonoma County. A Notice of Preparation has been prepared and is available at the Department of Water Resources and Conservation, 202 N. McDowell Blvd., and on the City's web site under Reports & Documents.

Program Description
The Water Recycling Expansion Program (WREP) consists of recycled water use for agricultural and urban uses within the Urban Growth Boundary of the City of Petaluma and unincorporated areas of Sonoma County south and east of the City. The WREP will include:

• Increasing Petaluma’s water recycling from about 700 to 1,070 million gallons (MG) per year at buildout of the General Plan 2025;
• Continuse secondary recycled water and new use of tertiary recycled water from the new Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility;
• Irrigation of golf courses and parks, agricultural and institutional uses, and irrigation, fire and treatment process at the new Ellis Creek Water Recycling Facility;
• Distribution pipelines and associated appurtenances;
• One 2.2-MG storage tank for tertiary treated recycled water, in the hills east of Petaluma;
• A 0.5- to 1.0-MG open reservoir for secondary treated recycled water, southeast of Petaluma; and
• One new pump station.

The goal of the WREP is to maximize Petaluma’s water resources by expanding the beneficial reuse of water in the City of Petaluma. By producing and using more recycled water, the City can leverage its already successful recycled water program to conserve a greater amount of drinking water, meet permit requirements, and keep potable water in the reservoirs.

The project will occur in phases starting in 2009 and continuing as demand dictates. The EIR will evaluate near-term improvements (the storage tank and about 2 miles of pipeline) at a detailed project-level; the remainder of the improvements and the use of recycled water will be evaluated at a program-level.

Program Goal
The goal of the Water Recycling Expansion Program is to maximize Petaluma’s water resources by expanding the beneficial reuse of water in the City of Petaluma in a reliable and feasible manner, while maintaining sensitivity to public health, the environment and costs. By producing and using more recycled water for irrigation purposes, the City can leverage its already successful recycled water program by conserving a greater amount of potable water, meet permit requirements, and keep drinking water in the reservoirs.

Program Objectives
The City of Petaluma’s Water Recycling Expansion Program is intended to achieve the following objectives:

• To enhance the water supply by providing recycled water for non-potable uses to create a new source of water that is sustainable, drought proof, and readily available within the City of Petaluma.
• To recycle secondary and tertiary recycled water effectively and therefore remain in compliance with regulatory permit requirements during the period of restricted discharge to the Petaluma River (May 1 through October 20).
• To meet regulatory requirements for reuse of approximately 1,025 to 1,070 million gallons (MG) a year of water through a flexible, economical program that provides water application locations in a drought or wet year making the program ecologically sustainable.
• To provide a comprehensive, phased program to construct, improve and expand the facilities, conveyance systems and irrigation systems necessary for the distribution of recycled water to meet user demands and restricted discharge requirements as population buildout occurs under General Plan 2025.
• To provide tertiary recycled water for irrigation reuse applications, and other uses as permitted under Title 22, where the City is currently supplying potable water, secondary recycled water, or for new users such as Ellis Creek Water Recycling Faility (WRF) and industrial customers' cooling towers, etc., and
• To continue to support the Water Conservation programs so as to offset potable water demands as described in the Water Conservation Plan.