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N.00 <br />^ <br />EOMLIND G. BROWN JR. <br />005�GOVERNOR <br />C L I R O N N! <br />MATTmEwARIOIiEZ <br />WaterBoards <br />SEC ETARY FOR <br />ENVIRONMENTAL PkOTEC710N <br />San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board <br />August 12, 2015 <br />Water Board Approves Residential Recycled Water Fill Stations <br />In response to the current drought, municipal recycled water programs in the San Francisco Bay <br />Region have initiated the use of residential recycled water fill stations. In essence, the stations allow <br />residential customers to drive up, fill up, and take the water home (Figures 2a and 2b). <br />Figures 2a and 2b. Examples of recycled water fill stations. <br />There are currently eight recycled water programs offering fill station pick-ups in the Region, with <br />several more in development (see table below). The recycled water being distributed is high quality, <br />disinfected tertiary -treated recycled water, and suitable for many uses, including irrigation of landscape <br />plants, parks, playgrounds, food crops, in decorative fountains, and for fire -fighting. The primary use is <br />for landscape plants and trees, in response to mandatory reductions of potable water for such uses. <br />Water recyclers in the San Francisco Bay Region have been producing and distributing high quality <br />recycled water for more than three decades. Distribution for large-scale projects is through permanent <br />buried pipelines and constructed irrigation systems, often identifiable because of the purple pipe used <br />for such systems. Those projects take a long time to design and build. Distribution by truck -hauling is <br />also used, and is particularly useful for short-term work such as on construction sites or difficult -to - <br />access projects such as watering trees along a busy street. <br />The current interest in residential recycled water fill stations in this Region started in 2014 with Dublin <br />San Ramon Services District (DSRSD). Permitting of the residential fill stations follows the same <br />pathway as the commercial truck -fill stations: an engineering report describing the project must be <br />approved by the State Board's Division of Drinking Water and the Regional Water Board, then the <br />local recycled water agency trains each user and issues permits. The local water agency tracks water <br />use by volume, date, and location. The residential fill programs, while only active since 2014, have <br />already implemented lessons learned, such as using dual -valved fill -hoses, providing stick -on labels for <br />each recycled water container, establishing a maximum allowed volume per vehicle (water is heavy, 50 <br />gallons is about 400 pounds, plenty for most home cars!), and even traffic control due to the large <br />number of interested customers. <br />BR. TERRY F. YOUNG, CHAIR I BRUCE H. WOLFE, EXECUTIVE OFFICER <br />1515 C€ay St., Suite 1400, Oakland, CA 94612 1 www.waterboardS.ca.gou/sanfrancis¢obay <br />%J RECYCLED PARER <br />