Reclaiming Wastewater in Southern California

The United States’ southwest has seen its share of water use dilemmas: explosive population growth, increased agriculture and an already-arid climate nearly always strain the groundwater supply. In addition, southern California must address seawater infiltration into fresh ground water aquifers; when too much groundwater is taken from the aquifers, the pressure of the nearby seawater is too great to resist and saltwater seeps into the aquifer. To address the latter problem, Orange County has for years been injecting freshwater into a ‘pressure ridge’ that effectively creates a barrier against seawater infiltration. More..