State authorities are set to vote next week on regulations for turning sewage into drinking water across California. The State Water Resources Control Board’s “toilet to tap” resolution would create, as a means of protecting public health, uniform recycling criteria for the direct reuse of treated wastewater as potable water, according to the agency.
Droughts are here to stay. That’s the warning from Santa Clara Valley Water as we continue to face a severe water shortage and uncertainty with regard to the upcoming winter months.
Rain or not, the message is to expect droughts to be a much more regular part of life, meaning conservation and preparation need to become lifelong habits as well.
In Santa Clara County, lawns are dry, a reservoir is nearly empty, and water restrictions are mandated. After two winters with very little rain — and San Jose’s driest year in 128 years of record keeping — the county is marked by one of the worst droughts in modern history.
Santa Clara County’s experience of drought is set apart from the rest of the state by a myriad of issues — less water from the Sierra Nevada, the effect of human-caused climate change on water supplies, and a case of incredibly bad luck.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
