Water Reuse Conference: Dr. David Sedlak lays out five challenges for expanding water reuse and desalination in California
Climate change and drought are forcing California to reimagine its water supply future. One promising tool in the toolbox is water recycling, something California has been doing since the 1970s. Recycled water can be used for agricultural and landscape irrigation, industrial and commercial uses, seawater intrusion barriers, and groundwater recharge. More importantly, putting recycled water to use can free up potable water for other uses and provides a local source for water supplies. Governor Newsom’s water supply strategy calls for recycling and reusing at least 800,000 acre-feet of water per year by 2030 and 1.8 million acre-feet by 2040, with most of that additional recycling involving direct wastewater discharges that are now going to the ocean.