FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif. – Learn how Orange County Water District (OCWD) and Orange County Sanitation District (OCSD) will produce "squeaky clean" water for the residents in north and central Orange County with a new video, hosted by Huell Howser, the star of "California's Gold," which airs on PBS stations. The video, produced by Huell Howser and now available for check out by patrons at Orange County libraries, features a step-by-step overview of the state-of-the-art processes behind the Groundwater Replenishment (GWR) System. The video will also be offered to local cable access channels for airing.

The GWR System will take highly treated sewer water that is currently released to the ocean and purify it to quality similar to bottled water using the same technologies that purify baby food, fruit juices, medicines and bottled water. As Howser says in the video after reviewing the four-step purification process of the GWR System, "That's gotta be the cleanest water in the history of the world!"

The four-step purification process includes microfiltration, reverse osmosis, ultraviolet light with hydrogen peroxide, and natural filtration, which "sounds very space-age" to Howser. While not necessarily "space-age," the GWR System is the only water purification project of its kind in the world, and offers a glimpse of the future of water purification technology. Water districts from all over the world are expected to emulate the GWR System because of its innovative solution to complex water and wastewater issues.

"This is an exciting project to be involved with, and we're committed to informing the public about the GWR system," said OCWD President Denis Bilodeau. "That's why we're providing Orange County residents with an entertaining and informative video on the science behind their future source of high-quality water."

The project, when complete in 2007, will provide enough water per day to support 144,000 families per year, which will represent a major contribution to satisfying the demands on Orange County. More than half of the area's water supply for 23 northern and central Orange County communities is drawn from groundwater aquifers, with the remainder imported from the Colorado River and California's State Water Project.

As a new water supply for Orange County, the GWR System is also part of the long-range plan developed by Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the water import agency for Southern California, to maintain and improve Southern California's reliable water supplies.

View the Special Announcement from Huell Howser on the Groundwater Replenishment System (requires Windows Media Player):
Low [306KB]| High [2.6MB]| Broadband Only – Full-Resolution [17.8MB]

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Orange County Water District (OCWD) manages and protects the large groundwater basin underlying north and central Orange County. OCWD is a special district, separate from the County of Orange or any city government. It was created by the California Legislature in 1933 to oversee Orange County's groundwater basin. The groundwater basin supplies more than half of the water needs for 2.3 million residents in the cities of Anaheim, Buena Park, Cypress, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Irvine, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Newport Beach, Orange, Placentia, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Stanton, Tustin, Villa Park, Westminster and Yorba Linda.

Orange County Sanitation District is responsible for safely collecting, treating, and disposing wastewater. It is a special district, separate from the County of Orange or any city government, established under the State Health and Safety Code, to provide sewerage service to a specific geographic area. The Orange County Sanitation District is governed by a 25-member board of directors comprised of representatives of each local sewering agency or cities within our 470-square-mile service area. For more information, visit www.ocsd.com.