In our desert climate, one of the most important issues residents face is having one of their most basic needs met: the need for water. California’s current water situation, a drought coupled with the judicial decision to divert water that normally serves Southern California communities in order to protect a small fish called the delta smelt, has made a steady water supply an even bigger concern.

The City of Lancaster has chosen to take an active role in protecting and increasing the City’s water resources. One method to achieve this is Lancaster’s Recycled Water Direct Reuse Program.

Through this effort, which was conceived and approved by the City Council in December 2004, the City’s Department of Public works has installed approximately four and a half miles of purple pipe – the type used to transport recycled water – in the Division Street Corridor. This area is bordered roughly by Avenue E and Lancaster Boulevard and a mile on either side of Division Street. Another half-mile of pipe has been laid along Avenue F to serve the Lancaster Landfill.

The system, constructed in late 2007 and early 2008, will provide access to approximately 370 acre feet of recycled water per year for the first three years of use. That’s equivalent to 120 million gallons per year, or about 330,000 each day. Those numbers are expected to grow as the system is extended to serve additional properties.

If you would like to use recycled water, an application must be submitted to Lancaster Utility Services. Please download an application and submit it to Julie Worrell via email.

For recycled water fees in Lancaster click here. 

For questions or more information on the recycled water application contact Bruce Katz at 661.945.6884 or Julie Worrell at 661.723.6223.

While some may hesitate to use recycled water, rest assured that while it is not potable, it is quite safe for other uses, such as landscape irrigation. All recycled water meets the State of California’s Title 22 standards, which mandate that water be treated to specific levels depending on the intended use. Recycled water from a tertiary treatment plant has been in use at Apollo Park since the 1970s. 

The Recycled Water Direct Reuse Program is just one way the City is making an effort to preserve our water resources for future generations.

For more information on recycled water, visit: Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County, Water Reuse Information