Poster presented on March 6-8, 2002 at the conference on Communicating the Future: Best Practices in Communication of Science and Technology to the Public, co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science, and NIST. Poster topics were selected as "best practices" through a formal peer review by a committee of distinguished science writers, educators, and researchers.

Groundwater Replenishment Public Information
Program conducted by: Orange County Water District and Orange County Sanitation District

Abstract

The Groundwater Replenishment System is a wastewater reclamation project that will be the nation's largest indirect potable reuse project using membrane purification. The purification process will use microfiltration, reverse osmosis and ultraviolet disinfection to produce 35 billion gallons of water per year to be put into the local groundwater basin, using secondary treated wastewater as its source water. The project's first phase will produce 75,000 acre-feet of water per year (an acre-foot is 326,000 gallons) in 2005.

The overriding goal of the Groundwater Replenishment System is for the project to go on line without public or political opposition. Key to the success of the current communications program has been the effective outreach to Orange County political and business leaders and active community members, on the high-quality and safety of the near distilled water that comes from this treatment process.

Being the first to tell a story makes a big difference. To date, the project has no organized opposition and is in the design and construction phase.

Toolkits
Community presentations to more than 500 organizations
Active outreach to elected officials
Active outreach to local media
Appearances on cable and local television
Distributing project video and newsletters to libraries
Tours of facilities

Research and Evaluation

Initial research (focus groups and telephone surveys) focused outreach on messages that were understandable and acceptable to the users of this future water supply. The project was ultimately renamed based on the results of this research.

Research showed
Orange County consumers did not believe future water supplies would be reliable
Consumers have a strong desire for water independence
Consumers have faith in the reverse osmosis membrane technology used by many bottled water companies.

By relating the sophisticated technological purification process to everyday items in a person's life, we were able to solicit over 100 organizations to support the project in writing and to gain the support of all the major business, political and environmental groups in the County. Research conducted in 2000 showed that awareness of the project has increased, and opposition to the project has decreased.

Budget

Communications budget (1997 to 2001):
Research: $30,000
Public Relations Consultant: $500,000
Staff hours: 10,000

Contact

Cindy Ferch, APR
Public Affairs Specialist
Orange County Water District
PO Box 8300
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
(714) 378-3218 ph
(714) 963-0291 fax
cferch@ocwd.com

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Created: 7/9/2002
Last updated: 8/17/2002
Contact: inquiries@nist.gov

The first step of the Groundwater Replenishment System is microfiltration. Secondary-treated wastewater passes through the microfiltration membranes, which provide an excellent pre-treatment before reverse osmosis.

Reverse osmosis is the final purification step in turning wastewater into high-quality purified water.

Map of Groundwater Replinishment System Users/Facilities (PDF)

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