As you blissfully sip clean tap water during the holiday season, take a moment to reflect on that glass of tap. Have you thought about the meticulous work it takes to deliver clean, safe and reliable tap water? A glass of tap water is the result of a collaborative effort between Your SoCal Tap Water member agencies and their distinct water treatment facilities. Think of our member agencies as Santa’s elves; we work during the on and off-season to deliver tap water that meets the highest state and federal water quality standards. We test, so you don’t stress!
Yes, Your SoCal Tap Water member agencies test the tap water running to your homes and into your glass cup around the clock.
There are many special systems and technologies in place today that our member agencies utilize to control salt levels in your tap water – and we plan to continue addressing salt content for years to come. Let’s take a closer look at the operation of these systems and technologies to understand how they make tap water taste clean and refreshing.
Eastern Municipal Water District (EMWD) – Desalination Program
EMWD operates a Desalination Complex that consists of three reverse osmosis desalters, located within the cities of Menifee and Perris. The complex takes unusable, salty groundwater and puts it through a reverse osmosis process, which essentially reverses the natural flow of water across a permeable membrane to remove impurities, like excess amounts of salt, from the water. EMWD then mixes the desalinated water with other fresh water sources before it reaches their customers. This system allows EMWD to deliver a local water supply source to nearly 30,000 customers in their service area.
Western Municipal Water District (Western Water) – Arlington Desalter
Did you know the Arlington Desalter was the first operating desalter system in Southern California? Let’s see how it works. Western Water pumps groundwater from an aquifer for desalination. Western Water’s Arlington Desalter uses reverse osmosis to remove excess nitrates and total dissolved solids (TDS). At high pressures, water is forced across a membrane to trap salt and other substances to cleanse the water for drinking purposes. This system allows Western Water to deliver more than 6.48 million gallons of water to their region every single day. That’s enough to provide water to more than 21,600 homes per year.
Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA) – Inland Empire Brine Line
The Inland Empire Brine Line allows SAWPA to protect the Santa Ana River Watershed by removing more than 500,000 pounds of salt every day from the Inland Empire area of the watershed. The Brine Line transports salty wastewater to Orange County Sanitation District (OC San) for treatment. Treated water is discharged into the Pacific Ocean by OC San, protecting our water resources, and preserving the environment. Thanks to the Brine Line, SAWPA can continue protecting water quality for those it serves.
Your SoCal Tap Water member agencies will always integrate the most efficient systems and technologies to serve up tap water that’s reliable, clean and desalinated. This holiday season and for all the seasons, you can bank on our member agencies to deliver the highest quality tap water.
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