The City has developed an updated Metropolitan Water Resources Management Plan (Metro Plan) to evaluate existing water supply conditions and future needs and develop a comprehensive water supply plan for the future. The plan incorporates the following strategies:
- Diversification and optimization of the City’s water supply portfolio to enhance reliability;
- Conjunctive use of available water supplies to make maximum use of available surface water supplies;
- Balanced and sustainable use of groundwater supplies and recharge facilities to minimize or eliminate groundwater overdraft and quality degradation;
- Increased surface water treatment capability including expansions of the City’s existing Northeast Surface Water Treatment Facility (SWTF) and a new Southeast SWTF;
- New water management approaches including increased water conservation programs and water recycling; and
- Acquisition of new water supplies to supplement existing supplies.
The transition from an aging system relying only on groundwater to a diverse system incorporating groundwater, treated surface water, recycled water and other new supplies is not an easy one. The Metro Plan provides the City with a detailed road map which will facilitate future water resource management policies and decisions, enhance infrastructure and water supply improvement planning, and provide a foundation for meeting eligibility requirements for grants and loans to help finance the program.
See more of: Western Groundwater Issues
See more of: Topical Sessions