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By Jasmine Laws
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Los Angeles is set to start a $740 million project in December to turn waste water into safe drinking water.
The city has been recycling wastewater for outdoor irrigation for places like golf courses and parks for a while, but this will be the first time the city has added recycled water to its drinking supply, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the nation's largest municipal water and power utility, is hoping to create a sustainable source of drinking water for the city by producing 20 million gallons of purified recycled water a day, it said in a project announcement.
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The project, named the Groundwater Replenishment Project, is one of the largest potable water reuse projects in the state and is scheduled for completion in 2027.
Following the approval from the Los Angeles Board of Water and Power Commissioners in October, the plan is for new facilities to be constructed at the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in Van Nuys to provide more than 250,000 people with safe drinking water.
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The project will help to assist the 2020 Urban Water Management Plan, the Los Angeles New Deal, and the Mayor's Executive Directive 5, LADWP said, which all aim to reduce the amount of drinking water that is imported, and instead increase investment in local sources.
Jesus Gonzalez, manager of water resources at LADWP, told Newsweek, "The first step in December is monumental. The City of Angeles will start construction on one of the largest water projects in the entire State of California, aka Groundwater Replenishment Project, that will provide a new climate resilient water supply for Los Angeles."
Commenting on the possible challenges of the project, he said that the "construction's unique challenge lies in the scope and complexity" of the project.
"Over three years, 300 construction staff will be working to complete this massive construction effort within the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Facility, L.A's second largest wastewater plant, which must remain operational throughout the course of the construction. So, the challenge is the complexity of building a massive project alongside a critical wastewater facility," he added.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass added that given "the serious effects of climate change," the project would "build upon the city's urgent action to develop sustainable infrastructure and build a greener L.A."
The project has been in the making for a long time—some of the infrastructure for the plant, such as the pipeline and pump stations, was actually developed in the 1990s, according to the Los Angeles Times.
A pause was put on the project in 2000 after the anti-water-reuse phrase "toilet-to-tap" water began circulating widely in the media, the outlet added.
Newsweek has contacted the press office of LADWP via email for comment.
Update 11/27/24, 02:57 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Jesus Gonzalez.
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