ORANGE : Lake Formed With Turn of a Faucet

A dry, empty sand and gravel pit has suddenly been transformed into a lake with a turn of the faucet by the Orange County Water District.

In a $25-million project dedicated Thursday, the water district is pumping water from the Santa Ana River to two basins along Santiago Creek, in an unincorporated area between Orange and Villa Park.

Water from the Santa Ana River first is diverted into the Burris sand and gravel pit in Anaheim and then pumped at a rate of 90,000 gallons a minute through a 4.5-mile-long pipe to one of the gravel pits. When the water level is high enough, it will begin to flow through a rubble dam into the other pit.

Since the four pumps were turned on, more than 5,000 acre-feet of water has been transferred. An acre foot is 326,000 gallons.

Water in the two 150-foot-deep pits will percolate into the district’s underground water basin, which supplies about 60% to 70% of the district’s water. Already, the level of some wells in the area has risen by 80 feet, according to water district General Manager William R. Mills.

District officials expect the new system to capture enough water each year to meet the needs of more than 100,000 customers. At that rate, the project would pay for itself in less than 10 years, district spokesman Jim Van Haun said.

Increasing the underground water supply decreases the district’s reliance on outside water sources, which are more expensive.

Although the project is now in operation, the district is not quite done. Sixteen acres have been graded and will be transformed into a wildlife sanctuary and equestrian or bike trails around the new lakes.