California’s aquifers and reservoirs are being drained as the state suffers through its fourth year of drought. Regulators recently started working on the permitting framework for seawater desalination projects. Simultaneously, California water managers and environmentalists are urging adoption of a water-recycling policy known as direct potable reuse. The idea is to purify wastewater and send it back to the tap rather than flushing it out to the Ocean. Although it has been implemented for a long time in many places around the world, it has been highly controversial in California. In the face of urgency, however, the “yuck factor” may well become irrelevant. Here is an interesting analysis.
Toilet-to-tap-water policy inching closer to a realistic plan in parched California
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