San Diego City's $3 billion plan to recycle wastewater into drinking water took another step forward Wednesday when the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board approved a modified permit for the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant.
City officials contend their “Pure Water” program will provide a sustainable source of potable water for a growing city with a dry climate. Backers estimate that recycling — purifying wastewater and mixing it in reservoirs with water from traditional sources — will account for one-third of the area’s supply by 2035.
The plan, approved by the City Council last October, offers the side effect of reducing discharges from the water treatment plant, which enabled the water board to issue the modified permit.