The Orange County Water District (OCWD; District) La Palma Recharge Basin, a local water reliability project, recently received two engineering awards.
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Orange County Branch presented the Outstanding Water Project Award for La Palma Water Recharge Basin to OCWD and Stantec Consulting Services at ASCE’s awards dinner on Feb. 16. The honor celebrates the project for how it helps improve the quality of life for those in Orange County.
The La Palma Groundwater Recharge Basin project also received the 2017 Engineering Project Achievement Award from the Orange County Engineering Council at its National Engineers’ Week Honors and Awards Banquet held Feb. 25. The award honors the accomplishments, quality and diversity of engineering and related scientific communities in Southern California.
The La Palma project was built to receive Groundwater Replenishment System (GWRS) water to percolate into the Orange County Groundwater Basin, which provides 75 percent of the drinking water needs for 2.4 million people in north and central Orange County.
The GWRS, a joint project between the Orange County Water District and Orange County Sanitation District, is the world’s largest advanced water purification project for potable reuse and produces 100 million gallons per day of “new” water.
“OCWD’s proactive approach to planning and investment has resulted in a groundwater basin that has doubled in yield,” stated Denis Bilodeau, OCWD Board President. “We are honored to be recognized by these two distinguished engineering organizations.”
Construction of the La Palma Recharge Basin began in September 2015 and was completed in February 2017. The La Palma Basin property is comprised of 17.7 acres and is located adjacent to the Carbon Creek Diversion Channel and the District’s existing Groundwater Replenishment System distribution pipeline. The recharge basin is dedicated to only receive GWRS water. Construction of the new La Palma Recharge Basin was performed by Los Angeles Engineering, Inc. and consisted of excavating the recharge basin, transporting the sandy material to other District facilities and to the contractor’s export site, constructing a pipeline to connect the basin with the existing GWRS distribution pipeline, constructing a dewatering pump station, and constructing a combination air-gap and flow control structure.
OCWD’s La Palma Recharge Basin project was primarily funded by a low-interest rate Clean Water State Revolving Fund Loan through the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Division of Financial Assistance. Additionally, the SWRCB has awarded the project a $2.86 million Proposition 1 Grant.
About OCWD The District is committed to enhancing Orange County’s groundwater quality and reliability in an environmentally friendly and economical manner. The following cities utilize the groundwater basin managed by OCWD and receive approximately 75 percent of their supply from it: Anaheim, Buena Park, Costa Mesa, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Irvine, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Newport Beach, Orange, Placentia, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Stanton, Tustin, Villa Park, Westminster and Yorba Linda. For more information about the Orange County Water District and its Board of Directors, call (714) 378-3200 or go to www.ocwd.com.
