COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE
5.	PRESENTATION ON GROUNDWATER REPLENISHMENT PROJECT BY THE MONTEREY REGIONAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL AGENCY
Meeting Date:		March 26, 2007	Budgeted:	N/A
From:		David A. Berger,	Program/	N/A
		General Manager	Line Item No.:
Prepared By:		Andrew Bell,	Cost Estimate:	N/A
		District Engineer
General Counsel Approval: N/A
Committee Recommendation: N/A
CEQA Compliance: N/A

SUMMARY: A representative from the Monterey Regional Water Pollution Control Agency (MRWPCA) will give a presentation on the Groundwater Replenishment Project. Basic information on the project is included in the MPWMD Comparative Matrix of water supply alternatives dated October 16, 2006. This matrix was distributed to Community Advisory Committee (Committee) members at the February 6, 2006 Committee meeting. The presenters will address questions orally following Mr. Oliver’s presentation.

RECOMMENDATION: This item is a presentation only. The Community Advisory Committee members should express their initial opinions on the merits and drawbacks of this project as part of Item 6, “Committee Comments on the Regional Urban Water Augmentation Project and the Groundwater Replenishment Project.”

BACKGROUND: Summary information regarding the Groundwater Replenishment Augmentation Project is located in column D of Part II of the Matrix, pages 185 through 191 of the packet for the October 16, 2006 MPWMD Board meeting. Item 13 from that packet, pages 159 through 205, was distributed at the February 6, 2006 Committee meeting.

Following is the summary description of the project from the October 16, 2006 staff report:

Groundwater Replenishment Project (Sponsor: MRWPCA – Exhibit 13-C, Column D)

A concept known as the Groundwater Replenishment Project (GRP) is currently being evaluated by MRWPCA. The GRP concept was not included in the 2004 matrix because little information was available, and MRWPCA was determining if the concept has merit to warrant further study. The concept envisions treatment of recycled water to near-potable condition for groundwater percolation or injection into the Seaside Basin. Similar to the ASR project described above, the purified, recycled water source would be available in winter, when it is not used by food crops such as artichokes, and could be put to a beneficial use rather than be discharged into the ocean. After meeting State DHS treatment and migration standards, this supplemental source of water could be made available for recovery and potable reuse. Similar technology has been very successful in Orange County in Southern California for many years by operation of the Water Factory 21 plant, which creates recycled water for injection into its groundwater basin as a seawater intrusion barrier. Expanding on that success, the Orange County Water District is implementing an 80 million-gallon-per-day purified, recycled water project that will substantially augment their long-term potable water supply.

New and Changed Information in 2006: In 2005 MRWPCA retained an expert consultant from the Water Factory 21 facility to help the agency assess and pursue the GRP locally. In the 2005 matrix, the GRP was stated to initially produce 2,800 AFY, with possible expansion in the future, and that a pilot project was anticipated in 2006. New information provided by MRWPCA in August 2006 states that the initial project would produce 2,400 AFY, and that a pilot project is anticipated in 2007. In the 2005 matrix the estimated capital cost is stated to be $26.9 million, and no annual operation and maintenance cost estimate was provided. New information provided by MRWPCA indicates an estimated capital cost of $37.9 million, and annual operation and maintenance costs are estimated to total $1,325,000 per year (August 2006 dollars). The new information states that the goal for the unit cost of water remains at $1,200 per acre-foot, the same as stated in 2005. The agency states that it is continuing to pursuing Proposition 50 and other funding sources. The agency has coordinated with MPWMD, California Department of Health Services, and other regulatory agencies regarding hydrogeology, health issues and engineering.

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