HomeMy WebLinkAboutRESO 9035Resolution No. 9035
Resolution of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Establishing
a Salinity Reduction Policy for Recycled Water
WHEREAS, the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP) serves the Cities
of Palo Alto, Los Altos, and Mountain View, the East Palo Alto Sanitary District, the Town of
Los Altos Hills and Stanford University; and
WHEREAS, the City of Palo Alto currently uses tertiary treated wastewater from the
RWQCP to irrigate the Palo Alto Municipal Golf Course, Greer Park, the Emily Renzel Marsh
and portions of the Palo Alto Duck Pond; and
WHEREAS, the City of Mountain View, a RWQCP partner, will begin delivering
recycled water from the RWQCP to end users in Mountain View in Summer 2010; and
WHEREAS, the City of palo Alto is investigating an expansion of the recycled water
delivery system to serve predominantly irrigation customers within the Stanford Research Park;
and
WHEREAS, although regulatory limits for Total Dissolved Solids (TDS, a common
measure of the salinity in a water system) do not exist, recycled water from the RWQCP contains
higher than expected TDS levels compared to the average potable source water concentrations of
the RWQCP partners; and
WHEREAS, the establishment of a quantitative TDS goal based on elimination of
saltwater infiltration from the Baylands will assist the RWQCP's efforts to reduce the TDS level
to a level one would expect given the RWQCP partners' source water; and
WHEREAS, City of Palo Alto, as managing partner of the RWQCP and in
partnership with the other RWQCP partners, has developed a Recycled Water Salinity Reduction
Policy to identify and pursue all cost effective measures to reduce the salinity of the recycled
water over time.
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Palo Alto does hereby
RESOLVE as follows:
SECTION 1. The Council approves the Recycled Water Salinity Reduction Policy,
attached as Exhibit A.
SECTION 2. The Council authorizes City Utilities Department and RWQCP staff to
coordinate implementation of the Recycled Water Salinity Policy with the RWQCP partners
SECTION 3. The Council directs. City staff to submit biannual progress reports to
Council on the effort to reduce the Total Dissolved Solids levels in the RWQCP's recycled
water.
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SECTION 4. In compliance with the CEQA, Council finds that the approval of
the Salinity Reduction Policy is not a "project" under CEQA, because the Policy does not
involve any commitment to a specific project which may result in a potentially significant
physical impact on the environment, as contemplated by Title 14, California Code of
Regulations, Section 153 78(b)( 4).
INTRODUCED AND PASSED: January 25,2010
AYES: BURT, ESPINOSA, KLEIN, PRICE, SCHARFF, SCHMID, SHEPHERD
NOES: HOLMAN,YEH
ABSENT:
ABSTENTIONS:
APPROVED:
~1?4
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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EXHIBIT A
CITY OF PALO ALTO
RECYCLED WATER SALINITY REDUCTION POLICY
POLICY STATEMENT
Recycling treated waste\,o/ater is increasing in the arid West as a response to the fact that
populations are increasing and fresh water supplies are not. Palo Alto and other communities
are using treated wastewater for landscape irrigation and that use is expected to grow
dramatically in the future. Salts accumulate in water when it is used by people and industrial
processes. To maximize the use of recycled water on the widest variety of green plants, the salt
content (salinity) needs to be minimized. The purpose of this policy is to ensure that the City is
taking all practical steps to reduce salinity in recycled water.
Therefore, it shall be the policy of Palo Alto to prevent unnecessary additions of salt to the
sewer system, with a goal of lowering the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in the recycled water to
less than 600 parts per million (PPM).
Applicability of this Policy
Palo Alto shall utilize this policy and its 600 PPM Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) goal to develop
salinity control measures. Palo Alto owns and operates the Regional Water Quality Control
Plant (RWQCP), which treats wastewater from Palo Alto and five other communities. The
RWQCP Partners, including Palo Alto, will be asked to identify controllable salt inputs to
wastewater from their communities and to implement control measures.
PROCEDURES
Staff estimates that the wastewater TDS can be reduced to 600 PPM without modifying normal
human use or industrial activities. The major way in which salts can be reduced is by controlling
the infiltration of saline groundwater which is currently entering sewer pipes through cracks and
problem areas in those pipes as they cross saline areas near San Francisco Bay. Other sources
of controllable salt must also be explored.
The activities that will be completed to implement this policy include:
1. Determine the salinity levels for each entity whose wastewater is treated by the RWQCP.
2. Identify the sources of salinity.
3. Develop alternatives for reducing the salinity levels.
4. Identity the actions that can be implemented to meet the TDS goal.
5. Prepare Salinity Reduction Plan.
6. Monitor TDS and report to Council semi-annually on progress towards meeting the TDS
goal.
7. Monitor impact of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) and all the relevant constituents of
concern for salinity on compost, plants and soil.
!\Iote: Questions and/or clarifications of this policy should be directed to the Public Works
Department.
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