Santee, CA, April 5, 2016 -- Padre Dam Municipal Water District was named 2015 Agency of the Year for expedient planning, approval and construction of the Advanced Water Purification Demonstration Program. The award was given by the Water Reliability Coalition at their annual Spring Reception, held Thursday, March 31 in San Diego.
“It has been a natural progression to take our fifty-plus years of experience in water recycling to the next level by using advanced technology to create a new, local drinking water source in east San Diego County, “said Allen Carlisle, CEO and General Manager of Padre Dam.
The Advanced Water Purification Program will create a new, local and drought proof drinking water supply using state-of-the-art technology to purify East County’s recycled water. This water recycling program will diversify East County’s water supply and reduce its dependence on imported water. The program is expected to meet 25-30 percent of East County’s current drinking water demands. Padre Dam’s Board of Directors approved a feasibility study in February and is moving forward with preparing a programmatic environmental study.
In 2015, Padre Dam opened the Advanced Water Purification Demonstration Facility to evaluate the feasibility of the Advanced Water Purification Program. The pilot program produces 100,000 gallons of purified water each day and is open to free public tours. The demonstration facility takes recycled water and treats it using four advanced water purification steps. The end product is water so clean that it is near-distilled in quality.
“The East County Advanced Water Purification Program could ultimately produce up to 30 percent of the drinking water for our region,” added Carlisle. “Additionally, it will give residents in Padre Dam Water District, Helix Water District, City of El Cajon and areas of San Diego County a new source of water that is safe, reliable, locally controlled and drought-proof.”
The Water Reliability Coalition is a broad-based affiliation of environmental, consumer, business, labor and technical organizations that have come together to advance water reuse in the San Diego region as a strategy to develop a safe, reliable, sustainable and cost-effective local water supply.
About Padre Dam
Padre Dam provides water, sewer, recycled water and recreation services to approximately 100,000 residents in East San Diego County including Santee, El Cajon, Lakeside, Flinn Springs, Harbison Canyon, Blossom Valley, Alpine, Dehesa and Crest. The District currently imports 100% of our drinking water supply and treats two million gallons per day (MGD) of wastewater at our Water Recycling Facility. Please visit www.padredam.org for more information.
