REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Update on Collaboration with the City of San Jos?, Santa Clara Valley Water District (Valley Water) and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) on Recycled and Purified Water; Action on Letter of Intent with Valley Water and the City of San Jose for Collaborating on Expanding the Use of Purified Water; Action on Memorandum of Understanding with San Jose and the SFPUC on a Purified Water Feasibility Study and Action on a Class 6 Categorical Exemption Under CEQA.
Report
COUNCIL PILLAR
Deliver and Enhance High Quality Efficient Services and Infrastructure
BACKGROUND
Santa Clara is the co-owner of the Regional Wastewater Facility (RWF), co-owned and administered by the City of San Jos?. The City of Santa Clara's sewer customers discharge approximately 14 million gallons a day (MGD) to the RWF. Valley Water operates the Silicon Valley Advanced Water Purification Center (SVAWPC), located at the RWF. The SVAWPC currently treats the secondary effluent from RWF and blends it with tertiary treated recycled water to customers in San Jos?, Santa Clara and Milpitas for various non-potable uses such as irrigation and industrial processes.
In January 2020, Valley Water approached San Jos? and Santa Clara about a Purified Water Project at the RWF. Valley Water intended to model a project similar to the one with the cities of Palo Alto and Mountain View to expand potable reuse by approximately 24,000 acre-feet (AF) as described in their Countywide Water Reuse Master Plan. In order to implement this project, Valley Water would need approximately 30 MGD of wastewater from RWF.
In September 2020, the San Jos? and Santa Clara Councils both directed staff to proceed with negotiating an agreement. In October 2020, Santa Clara Council reiterated the need for this effort. Meetings continued into late 2021. Discussion items included the cost and amount of the effluent, the length and cost of the land lease at the RWF site, and the allo...
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