CALABASAS, Calif. — As California dries and water must be rationed ever so carefully, people go to great lengths for a supplemental supply.
Jennifer Hart has a lot of ground to cover, and fast, if she wants to keep her yard alive. She pours water into a slow draining bucket positioned right at the base of her most troubled tree.
“It’s been like this for a few years and it’s just slowly getting better,” she said.
When Hart realized watering once a week was going to be a death sentence for her greens, she discovered something of a loophole: recycled water.
“It actually is a lifesaver for my plants and just my peace of mind not watching everything just die,” Hart said.
The recycled water is wastewater that’s been collected and treated. While humans should not ingest it, it can be used for plants. It’s for residential customers living within the service areas of the Triunfo Water & Sanitation District and the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District who will put in the work.
Hart had to take a class and get her own vessels all so that each Saturday she can make multiple trips to the spigot, the only day it’s open.
“My children think I’m crazy. They think I’m absolutely crazy, but it’s OK. I’m fine with that,” Hart said.
This source will not flow forever.
All the water in the region is imported. To make what they have go even further, there are plans to methodically process this reclaimed water so that it can help boost the drinking water supply as soon as 2028.
Riki Clark works for the Las Virgenes Municipal Water District. This Pure Water Project has many treatment steps, and she knows each one.
“Yes, we know that drought happens, and it comes and it goes, but this drought that we’re currently in and that’s hitting us. These conditions have never been experienced by the state before. So not only do we have to plan for the long term, we have to also figure things out kind of on the fly,” Clark said.
Across from the recycled water fill-up stations there’s also free compost, a byproduct of the treatment process, but Hart uses every second she’s allowed collecting one thing.
“We’ll see what happens, but I’ll keep doing this no matter when it ends,” Hart said.
The recycled water is only available as long as the supply lasts.