The boundary referees deciding San Diego’s water district divorce
Two small farming communities want to divorce the San Diego County Water Authority and buy cheaper water from Eastern Municipal Water District in Riverside County. The Water Authority’s rates are some of the highest in the country, especially for agricultural regions that Fallbrook Public Utility District and Rainbow Municipal Water District serve. That’s why those districts are trying to leave. The Water Authority’s rates have been growing for years, but they’re actually selling a lot less water. Mostly to blame are the rising costs of transporting Colorado River water or making it new by desalting ocean water. The Water Authority is staring down billions in debt and will lose a large portion of their sales once the city of San Diego, the Water Authority’s biggest customer, launches its wastewater-to-drinking water recycling program called Pure Water.