News: Equal Access to Groundwater
What is the problem?
The Orange County Water District (OCWD) is limiting Irvine Ranch Water District’s ability to pump low cost groundwater when compared to other north Orange County water agencies by implementing a policy that excludes recycled water from total water demand calculations. This imposes an unfair financial burden on IRWD customers.
How are water resources managed in Orange County?
North Orange County meets the total water demands of its residents through groundwater, imported water, and other water supplies. The region is fortunate to have access to a large groundwater aquifer, managed for over 80 years by OCWD. OCWD manages the amount of groundwater in the basin by establishing an allowable percentage of groundwater that the retail water agencies can pump relative to the agencies’ total water demands. Groundwater pumped in excess of this percentage is subject to additional fees and assessments. As a “managed” groundwater basin, the benefits of groundwater are intended to extend equally and fairly to all north Orange County retail water agencies and their customers.
Local groundwater is the lowest cost and most reliable supply of water for north Orange County, while imported water is the highest cost of water for the region. In order to reduce their dependence on costly imported water supplies, some retail water agencies have invested in other sources to meet their customers’ water demands. For example, IRWD, starting in the 1960s, took the initiative to reduce its dependence on imported water supplies by developing a recycled water system. Over the past 50 years, the customers of IRWD have invested upwards of $600 million in an innovative recycled water system that has improved regional water supply reliability and reduced the need for costly imported water supplies. IRWD customers have enthusiastically supported ongoing investments in the development of their recycled water system knowing that water is too valuable to be used only once and that reducing reliance on imported water is good resource management. The wise investment made by IRWD customers in a recycled water system should not be penalized by an OCWD policy.
So how does OCWD’s policy unfairly harm IRWD?
Unfortunately, an existing OCWD policy is unfairly shifting the benefits associated with IRWD’s investments in its recycled water system away from IRWD customers. OCWD’s current policy specifically excludes IRWD’s recycled water demands from what it considers “total water demand,” thereby artificially reducing the amount of high quality, low cost local groundwater that IRWD is allowed to pump. A graphical explanation is provided below:
By maintaining this policy, OCWD is shifting the benefit of IRWD’s investment in a recycled water system away from IRWD customers. OCWD’s policy penalizes the use of recycled water, imposes an unfair financial burden on IRWD customers, and is contrary to state law and California water policy.
What is a fair solution?
To resolve these issues, IRWD has requested that OCWD recognize that recycled water meets customer demands, just like the imported water that it replaced, and modify its policy to allow recycled water to count as part of an agency’s total water demand. This will end the unfair shift of benefit away from IRWD customers and will allow for fair and equal access to low cost groundwater among north Orange County water agencies. This policy shift would also align with OCWD’s strong belief that water recycling should be promoted, not discouraged.
Why now? Seeking fairness.
For many years, IRWD has attempted to develop an equitable change in OCWD’s unfair policy. This year, as a direct result of this policy of penalizing the use of recycled water, IRWD is faced with being assessed additional groundwater fees, estimated at approximately $2 million. To protect the interests of its customers, IRWD has taken action by filing a complaint with the Superior Court of the State of California. While IRWD is still hopeful that discussions with OCWD will resolve the issue, we believe that this lawsuit is needed now to facilitate a change in OCWD policy, to preserve the benefits of IRWD’s investments in its recycled water system, and to protect IRWD customers from additional costs imposed through higher rates.
For up-to-date information and resource library please visit http://www.equalaccesstogroundwater.com
Recycled Water - A Drought-Proof Source
Quench your plants' thirst with free recycled water from IRWD.
More than a year ago, IRWD established a recycled water filling station at the headquarters office at 15600 Sand Canyon Avenue in Irvine. Since then, hundreds of customers have benefitted from this resource.
If you are wondering how to keep that vegetable garden or those fruit trees alive during intense heat, recycled water is a drought-busting way to do that. And horse owners – want to control dust around your stables or even cool off your horses? Drop by and pick up some free recycled water.
To participate, first-time visitors must provide a California driver’s license, an IRWD water bill and a completed application form. Customers must provide their own containers.
For complete program rules and information, visit irwd.com/recycled.
For your convenience, summer Recycled Water Filling Station hours are:
- Monday – 1-5 p.m.
- Tuesday – 8 a.m.-noon
- Wednesday – 1-5 p.m.
- Thursday – 8 a.m. – noon
- Friday – noon – 5 p.m.
- Saturday – 8 a.m. – 3 p.m.*
- Sunday – 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.*
*Closed between 12:30-1 p.m. for lunch
The Recycled Water Filling Station will be closed during rain or excessive heat.
Check Out the Top 5 Features of RightScapeNow.com
RightScapeNow.com, the IRWD conservation-focused website, features everything you need to save water and turn your water thirsty lawn into a drought friendly RightScape.
RightScape: Do it right. Do it right now.
Landscape Resources: Get inspired by free landscape design ideas and before and after photos of landscapes that have been transformed from water-thirsty lawns into drought-friendly RightScapes! You can also download a free watering schedule, check out a list of local landscape designers, and much more!
Free Workshops & Events: Sign up for one of our many free RightScape workshops that occur throughout the year. Workshop topics include Choosing the Right Plants, Composting, How to Remove Your Grass Soil, Water, & Plant Relationships and more. IRWD also hosts other special events during the year.
Rebates: IRWD offers rebates on many water-efficient items. Get up to $75 for a rain barrel, $300 for a rain cistern, $250 for a high-efficiency clothes washer, and $150 for a high-efficiency toilet.
Turf Removal: Get rid of your grass using one of two IRWD turf removal programs. Choose between the “TurnKey Turf” Program, which offers you an all-inclusive landscape design, turf removal and plant installation service for a net cost of $3 per sq.ft., or select the DIY Program, giving you a rebate of up to $2 per sq.ft. of turf removed.
How do I?: Get answers to your frequently asked questions in the “How do I?” section, such as “How do I program my sprinkler timer?”, “How do I fix a leak?”, and “How do I save money on my water bill?”
Other features on the website include an online training center, instructional videos, updated drought information and more. Make sure to bookmark RightScapeNow.com on your computer or mobile device today!
Pollinators Garden Debuts at Marsh
When the butterfly garden was established at the Irvine Ranch District’s San Joaquin Marsh in 2005, the goal was to attract butterflies native to this area.
Now, you have another reason to visit the Marsh - the new pollinators garden. This was a work in progress since last fall. Sea and Sage Audubon led the effort with help from volunteers, including summer camp participants. The 6,600-square-foot garden is located in the meadow area of the Marsh, behind the Duck Club and adjacent the butterfly garden.
A dedication and ribbon-cutting for the garden was held on June 11.
A volunteer installed a sturdy rabbit-proof fence. Eagle Scout candidate Matthew Charles is creating nesting structures for native bees. IRWD installed the drip irrigation with lines to each plant and provided mulch to protect the plants and keep weeds at bay.
This colorful garden features around 22 different Southern California species, most of them local to Orange County. Some of them are California fuchsia, Cleveland Sage, sticky Monkeyflower, blue elderberry, white sage and California goldenrod, to name a few. Many of these plants will attract hummingbirds, but the real purpose of the garden is to draw bees, which are responsible for pollinating about one-third of the food consumed by humans.
Bee populations have been declining in recent years. Without bees, we would lose one out of every three bites of food we consume. Bees are very important to humans and plants. California has 1,000 native bee species, including bumble bees, carpenter bees, digger bees, mason bees and more. These native bees are solitary and build nesting places in the ground and in wood. They are rarely aggressive or sting.
Bring the family and visit the Marsh anytime, dawn to dusk, 365 days per year. Marsh information is located on our website.
Four IUSD Science Fair Winners Honored by IRWD Board
Four Irvine Unified School District students were honored at the June 13 Board meeting for their water-related science fair projects.
The students were presented with certificates and each of their schools will receive $100 on their behalf for science programs, with an additional $100 going to support the district science fair.
IRWD has supported the science fair since its inception. In the fall, IRWD professionals participate in Ask-a-Scientist Night, which offers the students the opportunity to get their questions answered about their prospective projects.
This year’s science fair was held at Irvine High School. IRWD Water Quality experts Mindy Bergen and Michele Drzymowski judged more than 35 water-related projects based on the use of the scientific method, creativity, relevance, completeness of the project and evidence of problem solving.
This year’s winners:
- Emily Nguyen, grade 6, Stonegate Elementary, “You Can Help Solve the Drought Problem.” Emily sought to discover how greywater from different sources, such as from dishwashers, showers and clothes washers affected plant growth. She believed that plants would survive the soaps from the greywater because they are themselves plant-based. The PH level of greywater is close to what plants need to survive. Her experiment took around four weeks and at the end, Emily’s hypothesis that the plants would survive turned out to be correct.
- Ryan Takiguchi, grade 7, South Lake Middle School, “Life Sustaining Dirt: Which Soil Base Sustains Life the Longest Without Water?” Ryan said that growing up in California and dealing with drought has made him aware that drought-tolerant gardens are important, but can be expensive to install. He believes if you want to do it right, you have to use the most affective materials. So he decided to research which soils would best sustain plants and hypothesized that potting soil would be more able to sustain life with the least water. He potted aloe vera plants separately in sand, gravel, potting soil, and aquaponic clay balls. Over 10 days, he monitored the plants, concluding that it was not the potting soil that sustained the plants, but the aquaponics clay balls were the most effective.
- Ainesh Arumugan, grade 9, University High School, “Smart Irrigation Controller.” Ainesh had the drought in mind when he began his project, with the goal to develop a low-cost smart irrigation controller. His project used a processing and controlling unit, a camera and relays to control the irrigation system. According to his tests and analysis of data, his irrigation controller had reduced the water applied for healthy grass and increased the water for dehydrated grass. After 15 days, the dehydrated grass returned to a healthy state and the controller reduced the watering schedule. He met his objectives of developing the necessary hardware to maintain plant health and had greater efficiency when watering grass and other vegetation. His project was able to meet his design criteria. Ainesh’s project went to the county competition, where he took a first place award in the Environmental science/environmental engineering division. His project then moved onto the state competition, where he received a $1,200 award from the California Water Environmental Association.
- Harrison Ku, grade 11, University High School, “Seawater Desalination Using a Microfluidic Electrodialytic Cell Based on Laminar Flow.” Harrison’s project sought to test the capability of a novel microfluidic chip design in desalinating water with multiple parameters. The effects of changes in flow rate and electric potential on output concentration were analyzed. He found that a little more than three runs through the cell on average are required for water to be completely desalinated. He concluded that even though multiple runs are required, the desalination method presented in his project held many more advantaged over other methods. Harrison’s project was selected to compete at the county science fair where he won second place in the Environmental science and environmental engineering division. He also received the science fair’s Nat Lamm memorial award. He also received an award from the Orange County Sanitation District and a Gold Award from the Orange County Water District.
Learn more about IRWD’s education programs on our website.
