The City of Oxnard has the responsibility to provide a safe, secure environment to live and work in today and in the future. A reliable water supply is part of that responsibility. With great foresight, more than a decade ago the city began plans for securing additional local water supplies to prevent shortages in the future. Recycled water is one way to increase our local sources and provide a sustainable water supply for the Oxnard Plain.

The City of Oxnard has launched an innovative solution to address the city’s water supply challenges. Recycled water will be available to supplement the city’s water supply by 2012.

Currently, the city receives approximately half of its water from Northern California’s rain and snowmelt. Another 25 percent is from regional groundwater from the United Water Conservation District and the final 25 percent is from the city’s local groundwater storage facilities.

New sources of water are needed because Oxnard’s traditional sources of water supplies are in jeopardy due to recurring periods of insufficient rainfall, statewide overuse of supplies, pumping restrictions, and threats to rich aquatic habitats and endangered species. Oxnard has recognized these challenges and is working to ensure that residents and businesses continue to have a reliable supply of water. One way to ensure this is to produce and use recycled water – a new, locally controlled and sustainable source of water for the Oxnard Plain.

Although in early 2011, we were fortunate to receive above-average amounts of rainfall throughout California and snowfall in our mountains, the state will continue to go through periods of drought over the long-term. Regardless of whether we are experiencing a drought or not, there are other hurdles to importing water from Northern California, including climate change, population growth and court rulings on the amount of water that can be pumped from the north to the south. With all of these added challenges it becomes ever more important for local cities and agencies to increase local water supplies. This is exactly what the city is doing with the Groundwater Recovery Enhancement and Treatment (GREAT) Program’s recycled water project.