Regional San is undertaking a monumental effort—called the EchoWater Project—to take our region’s wastewater treatment to a whole new level.
In 2010, Regional San was issued stringent new treatment requirements from the State of California that require us to make the most significant upgrade to our wastewater treatment plant since its original construction. This new system, which must be in place by 2021-2023, will produce cleaner water for discharge to the Sacramento River, as well as for potential reuse as recycled water (e.g., for landscape and agricultural irrigation).
We’re calling this major upgrade the “EchoWater Project” to reflect how it will take our wastewater and return it to a clean, natural state—much like an “echo” returning to its original source.
The EchoWater Project is among the largest public works projects in Sacramento’s history. When completed, it will keep Regional San in compliance with its regulatory permits and improve water quality by resulting in a nearly 95 percent reduction in ammonia discharged to the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Ultimately, EchoWater will be capable of meeting our region’s needs and protecting our region’s waterways for generations to come.
Construction Underway
The project is now in the construction phase—get current construction updates here.
Low-Interest Financing Approved
In early April, the project was approved to receive nearly $1.6 billion in low-interest financing from the State of California’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund. The favorable loan terms will save ratepayers more than a half billion dollars in interest costs. Read more here.
This low-interest financing for the EchoWater Project has been provided in part by the Clean Water State Revolving Fund through an agreement with the State Water Resources Control Board. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the State Water Resources Control Board, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.
For all wastewater treatment plants, the level of treatment required before the water can be released back into the environment is dictated by a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. For Regional San, this wastewater discharge permit is issued by the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Water Board), the state agency that regulates wastewater dischargers in our region.
Regional San’s 2010 discharge permit contains strict mandates that require us to construct costly new “tertiary” treatment processes for ammonia and nitrate removal, filtration and enhanced disinfection:
Ammonia and nitrate removal: Using a process called “biological nutrient removal” (BNR), this will eliminate nearly all ammonia and most nitrate from the effluent (treated water), addressing concerns about possible impacts these constituents may have on the ecosystem, both here and downstream.
The requirements of our new discharge permit will cost our region’s ratepayers about $1.5-2.1 billion to build. On top of that, about $50 million per year in ongoing maintenance and operations costs are anticipated.
Gradual annual rate increases to fund these improvements have already begun and will continue to be necessary until the project is completed in 2021-2023. For more information on the anticipated rate impacts of the EchoWater Project, please visit Monthly Rates.
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![New Biological Nutrient Removal facilities (foreground) are being built next to the existing treatment plant [artist rendering]](/sites/main/files/imagecache/full/main-images/bnr_rendering_lo-res.jpg "New Biological Nutrient Removal facilities (foreground) are being built next to the existing treatment plant [artist rendering]")
