Groundwater Replenishment System

ORANGE COUNTY'S CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION RECOMMENDS
GROUNDWATER REPLENISHMENT SYSTEM FOR
ADDITIONAL FEDERAL FUNDS

Delegation Seeks $7 Million for GWR System to be included in
Energy and Water Appropriations Bill

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif. – Orange County's United States Congressional Delegation composed of Rep. Christopher Cox, Rep. Gary Miller, Rep. Ed Royce, Rep. Ken Calvert, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher and Rep. Loretta Sanchez, submitted a letter to David Hobson (R-OH), Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, requesting that $7 million for the Groundwater Replenishment (GWR) System be included in the Fiscal Year 2005 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill.

In the letter dated June 1, 2004, the Delegation refers to the Groundwater Replenishment System as one of Orange County's "highest priority projects" and that it is "necessary for the public safety and economic viability of our county."

"We're very pleased to have the continued support of our federally elected representatives," said Denis Bilodeau, president of the Orange County Water District Board of Directors. "In addition, the Groundwater Replenishment System also has a wide range of business, community, environmental and political support from individuals and organizations throughout Orange County."

The GWR System takes highly treated sewer water and purifies it to near-distilled quality through a state-of-the-art, high-tech water purification system that includes microfiltration, reverse osmosis and ultraviolet light with hydrogen peroxide.

No schedule has been set for recommendations submitted to the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development for Fiscal Year 2005. The Subcommittee allocates federal funds for various projects that fall under the jurisdiction of specific government agencies responsible for awarding government grants.

The GWR System, a joint project of the Orange County Water District and Orange County Sanitation District, will ultimately provide enough water to meet the annual needs of 140,000 families when the project goes on line in 2007. Orange County's current water supply is made up of about 50 percent groundwater and 50 percent imported water from the Colorado River and Northern California.

###

The Groundwater Replenishment (GWR) System, a new high-tech water purification system, will produce water similar in quality to bottled water. GWR System water will be used to service a larger, expanded seawater barrier and to help drought-proof Orange County's groundwater basin by providing better water reliability and more local control over part of our water future.

Orange County Water District is a special district that was created by the California State Legislature in 1933 to maintain and manage the groundwater basin under northern and central Orange County. OCWD’s groundwater basin supplies 75% of the water needs in Anaheim, Buena Park, Costa Mesa, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Irvine, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Newport Beach, Orange, Placentia, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Stanton, Tustin, Villa Park, Westminster, and Yorba Linda.

Orange County Sanitation District is the third largest wastewater treatment system west of the Mississippi River, serving 2.2 million residents in northern and central Orange County.