Reclaimed Water Project Is OKd
The board of the Calleguas Municipal Water District has approved a $1.1-million contract to begin a reclaimed water project in Oak Park and North Ranch, clearing the way for construction to begin next month.
“This to me is a big deal,” Calleguas General Manager Don Kendall said. “This is the first major effort in the county on this level to decrease our reliance on imported water. It is the key element in ‘drought-proofing’ Ventura County.”
The contractor, W.A. Rasic of Sunland, will install a pipeline along Kanan Road through Oak Park, from the Ventura Freeway to Lindero Canyon Road.
When all four phases of the project are completed by June of next year, the project will be capable of delivering 1,100 acre-feet--about 3.7 million gallons--of treated waste water every year, said Assistant Calleguas General Manager Ron Marchelletta. The water will be used to irrigate parks, school grounds and landscaping in Oak Park and Thousand Oaks and the golf course at the North Ranch Country Club.
Marchelletta said Calleguas expects to spend less than $5 million for the entire project, which is a joint venture with Las Virgenes Municipal Water District and the Triunfo County Sanitation District.
Kendall said the reclaimed water will be sold at a price 70% to 80% of that charged for drinking water.
Kendall said Calleguas plans to build other reclaimed water projects throughout its Ventura County service area, which stretches from Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks to Oxnard.
He said at least 30,000 acre-feet of waste water produced by county treatment plants could be recycled as reclaimed water.
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