Win with Recycled Water

Conserve a Precious Resource

In the arid Western United States, water is a scarce resource and a valuable commodity — one that no community can afford to waste. That is why Redwood City is proud to be making highly treated recycled water available for landscape irrigation throughout Redwood Shores and for use in industrial processing in the Greater Bayfront area.

Using recycled water for irrigation and industrial processes are two effective ways to create a supplemental water resource that is safe and dependable. It saves a tremendous amount of precious drinking water for higher purposes and it is part of Redwood City’s long-term strategy to ensure an adequate, reliable and affordable water supply for business and residential customers. Expanding the use of recycled water and practicing water conservation are sound ways to preserve our most vital resource.

Practice Good Stewardship

Businesses that participate in our Recycled Water Project can be proud of their roles as good stewards of the environment and their community. Choosing recycled water for your landscape irrigation will send a message to the larger community that you are doing your part to help Redwood City meet its water supply objectives.

Tap into a Drought-Proof Water Supply

Another benefit of becoming a recycled water customer is the dependability of the recycled water supply throughout the year. This is good news because as a recycled water user, you will be able to sustain healthy landscaping even when others are forced to cut back due to increasingly high costs of drinkable water or because of drought conditions. If you are an industrial user, you know how essential a dependable water supply is to the successful operations of your plant.

And Save Money, Too

Redwood Shores businesses who switched to recycled water will realize substantial savings for at least five years from the connection date. For commercial irrigation meters, the City will discount each water bill by 25 percent. For industrial meters, the discount will be 40 percent.

Additionally, existing irrigation customers will incur no connection fees and Redwood City will pay the costs of retrofitting your landscape irrigation to accept recycled water. The Recycled Water Project team will carefully review and consider the best approach for your site. If yours is a site that requires a challenging retrofit, expenses may need to be shared. Industrial users will want to retrofit their own systems, which is why their recycled water rates are more deeply discounted. In any case, you will still enjoy the benefit of reduced recycled water rates for many years to come.

Make a Smooth Transition

To help businesses make an easy and successful transition to the use of recycled water, the Redwood City Public Works Services Department will provide an extensive program of informational support services and direct assistance to recycled water customers.

This assistance will include:

• Site evaluations.
• Soil and plant tissue analysis and replacement recommendations.
• Water quality information.
• Irrigation system evaluations and efficiency recommendations.
• Certification training for site supervisors.
• Workshops in successful landscape management, with specific suggestions on using recycled water most effectively.
• Reimbursement for some irrigation equipment upgrades or adjustments (determined on a site by site basis).

Redwood City’s Water Challenge

In early 2002, the City Council of Redwood City began planning for the development of a recycled water system to address the very real possibility of severe water shortages in coming years. Our city is just one of hundreds of California municipalities struggling with increasing demand for water and a supply that is essentially finite. By 2020, California’s growing population will require 30 percent more water, from just under 30 million gallons a day (MGD) to almost 40 million MGD. Tertiary treated recycled water, meeting the strictest state health standards, provides an additional source of water for specific uses. California communities are now using it to irrigate parks and school grounds, grow food crops and cool power stations.

Redwood City is turning to the use of tertiary treated recycled water to meet its own growing demands. If the Council had not developed the Conservation and Recycled Water programs, the city would have almost tripled its excess use of Hetch Hetchy water by 2010. Using recycled water for irrigation helps preserve the Hetch Hetchy water supply to ensure adequate drinking water for our community.