New wells help the Desert Water Agency recycle more water

Cooler months in the Coachella Valley are usually a quiet time at the Desert Water Agency’s recycling plant in Palm Springs.

Dave Luker, general manager of the Desert Water Agency, explains, “This time of year it’s cooler and there’s less demand, but during the summertime and in overseed period we run anywhere form 20 to 22 hours a day if not 24.”

Sometimes 24 hours a day is not enough. As temperatures warm up, the demand for recycled water skyrockets. Golf courses, parks, schools, and medians all use recycled water for irrigation but, as seasonal residents leave the valley less water is used that can be sent to the recycling plant.

“There’s not enough wastewater generated in town for the irrigation demands we have,” Luker says. “So we have to right now supplement the wastewater flow with groundwater to meet those irrigation requirements.”

When all of the DWA’s recycled water is used, the more expensive and higher quality drinking water is substituted to supplement irrigation needs. To help, the Desert Water Agency is building two new wells to create a greater supply of recyclable water.

Luker tells us, “The new wells will produce anywhere from 500 to 1000 acre feet per year, that’s enough for up to 2000 houses. That saves that water for them.”

The wells sit on the eastern edge of the DWA’s grounds in Palm Springs and take advantage of an historic wastewater percolation which is high in nitrates and dates back to World War 2.

“Low quality, shallow water, it’s really not bad water,” Luker says. “Really it meets drinking water standards however, it’s not as good as the lower water which we deliver. And we wanted to take an opportunity to take advantage of those nitrates for irrigation which are good for plants.”

Those wells also prevent the same nitrates from sinking deeper and making their way into the supply of drinking water, which helps both the public and the Desert Water Agency.

“It’s avoiding nitrate removal from the drinking water because it’s very expensive and it’s making good use of a resource that right now is being ignored and not being used,” Luker explains. “It’s lower quality, but it still has a great purpose.”

As soon as the wells and pumps are ready sometime in April, they’ll join the rest of the facilities resources on their hi-tech monitoring and control system and will begin supplying new recycled water.
The best part for customers? The Desert Water Agency says monthly bills aren’t likely to be impacted.