WASTEWATER RECYCLING
Overview
Los Angeles already treats nearly 800 million gallons of wastewater every day, but 500 million gallons of this gets discharged daily into the ocean — an enormous missed opportunity at a time when local water supplies are increasingly strained.
Advanced purification technologies make it possible to transform wastewater into a safe, reliable source of water for groundwater recharge, drinking, and other essential uses. Expanding these systems can significantly reduce pollution while strengthening our region’s long-term water security.
We advocate for scaling up water recycling efforts across the region, including major initiatives like Pure Water Los Angeles and Pure Water Southern California. These projects could help Los Angeles meet up to one-third or more of its water needs with locally recycled supply, treating wastewater as the precious resource it is instead of continuing our wasteful pump-and-dump model.
Southern California could reuse more than
1 million acre-feet of wastewater
each year
The Challenge
Projects already in planning could produce about
526,000 acre-feet
of new water annually
Recycled water could cost
less than half
as much per acre-foot as water from the proposed Delta Tunnel
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Southern California has the potential to reuse more than 1 million acre-feet of wastewater each year. More than 500,000 acre-feet of new supply is already in planning or development. We support local, state, and federal investments that help bring these projects online while keeping costs, energy use, and environmental impacts as low as possible.
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Large-scale water recycling projects require close coordination among Metropolitan Water District, Los Angeles County Sanitation District, LA Sanitation, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, and other key agencies. We advocate before these decision-makers to keep projects moving, align regional plans, and avoid unnecessary delays, costs, and infrastructure.
We also push agencies to maximize water reuse, protect rivers and other local waterways, and ensure that project costs and benefits are shared equitably.
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Wastewater recycling can provide a dependable local water supply, reduce reliance on imported water, and create local jobs. Through communications, media outreach, and public advocacy, we explain why these projects matter and keep pressure on decision-makers to follow through.
We also support policies that make funding more accessible, including removing barriers that limit state financing for large water recycling projects.
