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Santa Rosa staff report ample regional water supplies and ongoing recycled‑water discharges this winter
Summary
City staff reported healthy Russian River supplies and carryover reservoir storage but said Santa Rosa has discharged nearly 879 million gallons of recycled water over three events this water year; staff highlighted a new redundancy connection to Delta Pond and local outreach efforts.
City staff told the Board of Public Utilities that regional reservoir levels and Russian River watershed conditions are strong this water year, but the city has conducted several controlled recycled‑water discharge events because storage reached historically high levels.
Peter Martin, deputy director of water resources, said Sonoma Water filed and received a state water board order granting temporary relief related to in‑stream flow requirements; that order will expire in about 180 days and Sonoma Water may file another petition in April. Martin reported Lake Pillsbury storage at about 57,000 acre‑feet and noted Pacific Gas & Electric is no longer allowed to operate the slide gates at Scott Dam and Pillsbury Reservoir for seismic reasons, which reduces available storage by tens of thousands of acre‑feet.
Mike Prins, deputy director of regional water reuse operations, described a recently completed connection that ties the Geysers pipeline into Delta Pond, a primary discharge point north of the Laguna Treatment Plant. "That's actually 17,000,000 gallons per day of flow going into Delta Pond," Prins said, noting the connection provides redundancy and allows continued delivery to Calpine while enabling additional storage management options.
Prins said the city has conducted three controlled discharge events in water year 2024–25, totaling about 879,000,000 gallons discharged to date across those events (one in late December and two in February). Staff estimated those discharges equal nearly 5,000 pounds of phosphorus removed from the city's phosphorus credit balance, leaving roughly 12,400 credits remaining. Prins and Martin said the city has discharged in multiple prior years and that discharges this winter are attributable to wet conditions.
Staff also highlighted public outreach and efficiency programs: the Saint Patrick's Day 5K on March 16, National Fix‑A‑Leak Week activities, Water Smart plant selection and irrigation scheduling tools, DIY toolkits at libraries and available rebates through the Saving Water Partnership.
Board members asked about regionalization of reuse facilities. Prins and Burke said staff have discussed potential regional opportunities with Sonoma Water and Windsor and participate in regional efforts (including biosolids projects) but said there are no formal regionalization plans currently; staff said they are open to further conversations.
