The Town of Windsor estimates it is already saving 275 million gallons of drinking water a year, by irrigating 400 acres of golf course, vineyard, parks, pasture and fodder croplands with recycled water.
Rohnert Park, California
The City of Rohnert Park has been using recycled water to offset potable water supplies since 1988. Approximately 510 acres of land are irrigated with recycled water, offsetting more than
three million gallons per day of potable city water. An extensive distribution system distributes recycled water to golf courses, city parks, school grounds, and commercial properties.
Santa Rosa, California
Santa Rosa uses recycled water for agricultural and landscape irrigation. Landscape irrigation customers include Countryside Estates, Finley Park, State Farm Insurance, Agilent Technologies, the Press Democrat, and numerous parks and schools. In 1998, landscape irrigation accounted for 343.9 million gallons of water. Santa Rosa also provides recycled water for over 6,000 acres of agricultural land.
Irvine has been using recycled water for homes, greenbelts and common areas, parks, schools, and agriculture for the past 27 years. Reclaimed water is also used for front and backyard irrigation in eligible estate sized residential lots, for toilet flushing in a few high rise and commercial buildings, and for industrial uses such as carpet dyeing.
El Dorado Hills, California
The El Dorado Irrigation District is supplying 3,400 homes in the Serrano planned community with recycled water for front and backyard irrigation.
Clearwater/St Petersburg, Florida
The cities of Clearwater and St Petersburg supply recycled water for landscape irrigation in thousands of homes, in addition to providing recycled water for various golf courses, soccer fields, parks and beach facilities. Florida residents consider the availability of recycled water for irrigation to be a valuable amenity.
Photos by Kelly McManus