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Carpinteria water district previews advanced purified-water project to reduce reliance on imports
Summary
Carpinteria Valley Water District officials described a proposed advanced water purification project intended to supply roughly 1,000 acre-feet per year, reduce wastewater discharges and improve local water reliability; no action was sought from the Planning Commission at the August meeting.
Bob McDonald of the Carpinteria Valley Water District gave commissioners a high-level briefing on a planned advanced water purification project that would treat wastewater to create a local, potable supply.
The project is intended to generate a baseline supply of about 1,000 acre-feet per year and to reduce the city’s dependence on imported water, McDonald said. “During extended dry conditions, Carpinteria faces a shortfall of 2,500 acre-feet per year,” he told the commission, citing the district’s planning analysis and earlier drought experience in 2016.
The presentation described an advanced water purification facility to be built on the Sanitary District site, a roughly 1-mile 10-inch conveyance pipeline that would convey treated water to injection wells near Linden, and two groundwater-monitoring well clusters for regulatory oversight. Treated water would be injected into the local groundwater basin and later recovered through existing groundwater wells, district staff said.
McDonald and his slides summarized project timing and financing: the district has secured about $25 million in grants and is pursuing an additional $10 million; remaining costs would be financed with a low-interest state loan. Construction sequencing described in the presentation targeted start of the advanced purification facility in 2026, with conveyance and injection well work following in mid-2026.
Staff emphasized program benefits the district highlighted, including: increased local resilience if the single imported pipeline is disrupted, support for groundwater sustainability goals, and reduced ocean wastewater discharge. The district characterized the program as a 50-year project that would require a substantial up-front investment but provide multi-decade reliability.
There was no action required or taken by the Planning Commission on the presentation; district staff said the project would come to the commission later when land-use entitlements (a conditional use permit and coastal development permit) are required.
Ending: District staff said they are still assembling grant funding and design and will return with formal permit applications and environmental documentation as required by the city and Coastal Act.
