MAYOR GARCETTI ANNOUNCES COMPLETION OF $50 MILLION WATER RECLAMATION PLANT EXPANSION
LOS ANGELES (February 3, 2017) — A new $50 million expansion of the Terminal Island Water Reclamation Plant will double the facility’s capacity to recycle water and help Angelenos save more than 12 million gallons of potable water every day.
Mayor Eric Garcetti celebrated the project’s completion today at the plant in San Pedro, alongside leaders from the Los Angeles Department of Public Works and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP).
“We may be seeing a wetter winter this year, but L.A. is still in a historic drought — and saving water is as important as ever,” said Mayor Garcetti. “This new facility is a bold investment that will help us save drinking water, expand our use of recycled water, and become a more sustainable city for generations to come.”
Currently, the Terminal Island Water Reclamation Plant can treat six million gallons of recycled water per day. The expansion project doubles that capacity to 12 million gallons.
The additional water treated by the plant will be used to recharge the Dominguez Gap Barrier, which creates a crucial buffer to prevent ocean water from seeping into groundwater aquifers along the coast. It will also irrigate Harbor Golf Course, helping meet Mayor Garcetti’s short-term goal of converting 85 percent of the City’s golf course acreage to recycled water use.
“LA Sanitation is leading the way when it comes to water reclamation infrastructure, and we have come a long way since Terminal Island was first built in 1935. The new disinfection process, called the Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP), uses ultraviolet light to purify water,” said Enrique Zaldivar, General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Sanitation. “With this new expansion, we will be able to treat 100 percent of the plant flow to this extensively treated high-quality recycled water standard.”
The additional capacity at the Terminal Island Water Reclamation Plant is the first in a series of new water recycling projects spearheaded by Mayor Garcetti. Other projects in the works include expansion of the Donald Tillman Water Reclamation Plant to recharge the San Fernando Valley aquifer and new recycling capacity at the Hyperion treatment plant to serve LAX, West Basin Municipal Water District, and LADWP customers on the Westside.
“The use of recycled water is crucial to LADWP’s local water supply strategy,” said LADWP Chief Operating Officer Martin Adams. “Coupled with stormwater capture, conservation and groundwater replenishment, recycled water is key to our growing city’s sustainable water future. The expansion of the Terminal Island Water Treatment Plant will help us to reach more business and commercial customers with this valuable resource in the Harbor area.”
By serving several large industrial customers in the Harbor area, the plant’s increased production will help L.A. grow its economy and serve business needs through locally supplied water instead of expensive imported water.
The plant’s expansion advances several of the goals outlined in Mayor Garcetti’s Sustainable City pLAn, including cutting the City’s purchases of imported water by 50 percent by 2025 and sourcing 50 percent of our water locally by 2035.
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