Recycled water plan on tap for the region
Wendy Leung
Daily Bulletin
01/23/2011
RANCHO CUCAMONGA - The Inland Valley will soon see a lot of purple.
A $27 million recycled water project affecting Upland, Ontario and Rancho Cucamonga is under way.
When the Inland Empire Utilities Agency finishes construction later this fall, facilities such as the San Antonio Community Hospital in Upland and Red Hill Park in Rancho Cucamonga will use recycled water for its outdoor irrigation.
Marked by purple pipes, recycled water is waste water that has been treated and purified for irrigation or industrial use.
More and more water agencies envision purple pipes on the horizon, because other sources such as imported water from Northern California can be costly and unreliable.
"Recycled water is obviously a reliable, future resource of water," said John Bosler, director of operations and engineering at the Cucamonga Valley Water District. "We're trying to increase the percentage being used. But the infrastructure takes a long time and can be costly."
In the northeast part of Rancho Cucamonga, construction of a recycled water project is complete with plans to hook up the purple pipes by April 1.
When that happens, irrigation for large water users like The Epicenter and Victoria Gardens in Rancho Cucamonga will utilize recycled water.
"Once the projects are completed, it'll free up additional water, and the need to purchase imported water will decrease," said Kathy Tiegs, who serves on the CVWD board.
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"I'm a definite advocate of recycled water."
Construction of the current project will include a pump station at Ontario's Vineyard Park and a 3million gallon reservoir on 19th and Sapphire streets in Rancho Cucamonga.
The project will benefit parks, schools, golf courses, center medians and other landscaped areas.
IEUA and CVWD are also contemplating building infrastructure for recycled water in Chino, Chino Hills and the Village of Heritage development in Fontana.
For questions about lane closures, traffic impact and work hours related to the construction of the recycled water project, call the IEUA hot line at 909-993-1501.
Street closures coming
Single lane closures are expected in segments of area streets during a $27 million recycled water project.
