by David Chaves

Created on: July 14, 2008

Another 10 years of drought conditions in Los Angeles has brought back the very good but very unwelcome idea of recycling wastewater into drinking. It's been given the unpleasant name "toilet to tap" by mainstream media. A term that certainly hasn't helped the public embrace this idea. Most people that are against it fall into 3 categories. One being the ones that simply think it's gross as if the city is just gonna pump poop and pee right into our sinks. The second being the ones that understand it but don't trust science and the third being the ones that trust it, understand it but don't want to be the ones that have to drink it.

This is an interesting phenomenon to me. A public project that makes all the sense in the world that is only in question because of public opposition that largely has come about from media and newspaper articles. This is the ideas second chance at life. Just months after Orange counties own water recycling facility went live LA brought back the ex lover from a decade ago. This was a good idea then too. There was so much public outcry against it that the whole thing was scrapped. That's when it got the unhelpful moniker "Toilet to Tap". I am not sure which journalistic asshole came up with that but I am sure he thinks he is an absolute genius. Yes sir, thank you for setting us back 10 years.

The science of recycling wastewater has improved since the last time it was being considered. The water would go to a main treatment plant where it passes through several filters which remove any solids through micro filtration. Then, the water passes through a second series of filters through reverse osmosis sucking the water back and forth through the filters. The holes on these filters are less than 1/300 of a human hair. Small enough to remove bacteria, pesticides and other pharmaceuticals. It is then exposed to ultraviolet light and hydrogen peroxide is added to break down and disinfect any remaining compounds. The water than gets pumped into an underground aquifer where it will sit for several years and mix with groundwater before it is pumped back into homes. The end result is more pure than our tap water is right now.

So what's the problem?

We are. The DWP estimates that to get a plant built in LA they are going to have to launch a massive PR effort to educate people on the whole process. Guess who pays for that? We do. 2018 is the expected date for the plant to be ready to go. 2018. 10 years. 1 plant. WTF. I understand it's a big project.

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