Board authorizes agency to make Salinas industrial wastewater available to Monterey One under interim agreement

The Board of Supervisors and the Monterey County Water Resources Agency on April 29 authorized staff to finalize an interim agreement that allows Monterey One Water to accept up to 1 million gallons per day of industrial wastewater from the City of Salinas when the city’s system is operating over capacity.

Nut graf: The agreement, negotiated among the city of Salinas, the Water Resources Agency and Monterey One Water, assigns costs to the beneficiary depending on how the wastewater is handled—either treated and injected for reuse via the Pure Water Monterey project, discharged under permitted ocean outfall, or redirected to the agency if an unanticipated county need arises.

Assistant General Manager Ara Ashedarian said the city approached the agency after industrial processing flows from roughly 25 food processors sometimes exceeded the city system’s capacity. Under a 2015 agreement, the Water Resources Agency holds a first right of refusal on the city’s wastewater. Ashedarian told the board that current water storage and distribution forecasts for the 2025 irrigation season indicate the agency does not need that supply right now and therefore can allow Monterey One Water to temporarily accept the additional industrial flows.

The draft agreement requires Monterey One Water to bear costs for treatment and disposal consistent with the eventual beneficiary of the water (Pure Water Monterey injection or ocean discharge). It also includes provisions to return flows to the agency in the event of an emergency or operational change requiring the county to use the city’s wastewater.

Ending: The board approved the interim authorization; Ashedarian said the agreement had already been approved by the city and Monterey One Water and would allow the region to manage industrial wastewater capacity without impairing the agency’s preexisting water rights.