By Sallie James
Using treated wastewater for lawn irrigation was a hard sell seven years ago when Victor Majtenyi first became Delray Beach’s deputy director of public works. But water restrictions changed that perspective forever.
“Now I can’t sell the product fast enough. It’s like gold,” Majtenyi said.
The reason? Reclaimed water isn’t subject to water restrictions like potable water. It’s also a little bit cheaper to use.
To keep up with demand, the city’s ongoing program to use treated wastewater for landscape irrigation is expanding, this time into the barrier island area, where water usage tends to be high, Majtenyi said.
In August, the city completed a $1.47 million installation of distribution pipes and meters in the area bordered by Atlantic Avenue, Casuarina Road, Gleason Street and State Road A1A. The city will start connecting residents to that system in early 2014. A $170,000 South Florida Water Management District grant helped fund the project, Majtenyi said.
Another section to the west, bordered by Atlantic Avenue, Casuarina Road, Gleason Street and the Intracoastal Waterway is slated for construction in March 2014. Completion is expected in September 2014, Majtenyi said. Another SFWMD grant is providing a $100,000 toward project’s second phase, which is expected to cost about $1.3 million.
Expansion into areas bordered by Casuarina Road south to Poinsettia Road, and Lewis Cove south to Linton Boulevard are planned for the future but not yet scheduled.
On average, Delray Beach customers use about 16.5 million gallons of water a day. The city is currently producing a little over 2 million gallons of reclaimed water a day, Majtenyi said. The March expansion will up that rate to about 2.25 million gallons of reclaimed water, he added.
“We will keep expanding it. Once we get the barrier island done, we will go west of Interstate 95 in some of the other northwest sections of town,” he said.
One reason the barrier islands were selected is that there already was a partial outfall pipe in place, Majtenyi said. Pipe installation for the next phase will be in the city’s right of way, mostly in the roadway. The new meters for the reclaimed water will be installed near the existing meters for potable water.
The city has been using reclaimed water to irrigate Delray Beach golf courses, city parks and roadway medians for years.
It’s slightly cheaper to irrigate with the reclaimed water, which costs $1 per 1,000 gallons compared to the approximate $1.25 per 1,000 gallons of potable water, according to Majtenyi.
“The intent is not to be cheaper but as an alternative water source,” Majtenyi said. Delray Beach began using reclaimed water years ago to irrigate because South Florida’s potable water supply is limited, and it provided a sensible alternative for irrigation, Majtenyi noted.
Installations that allow the use of reclaimed water for irrigation include two meters — one for potable water and one for reclaimed water, because the two cannot be mixed, he said.
According to the Palm Beach County Utilities Department, reclaimed water shouldn’t be used to fill swimming pools or spas, or for drinking by people or pets. But because it’s highly filtered and disinfected, there’s no threat from accidental contact like being sprayed by a lawn sprinkler.
Reclaimed water is used in the ponds at Delray Beach’s Wakodahatchee Wetlands, 13026 Jog Road, and at the Green Cay Wetlands and Nature Center, 12800 Hagen Ranch Road, Boynton Beach, according to the Palm Beach County Utilities Department.
Benefits of irrigating with reclaimed water:
• Maintains vegetation on golf courses, residential lawns and common areas, and rights of way
• Provides not only water, but also residual nutrients to enhance plant growth
• Reduces withdrawal of water from aquifers and conserves this water for human consumption
• Helps to recharge groundwater supply after it is filtered by soil and sand layers
• Reduces reliance on deep injection wells for disposal of effluence
• Delays capital costs needed for potable water expansion projects
• Regulated by the Florida Dpartment of Environmental Protection
Source: Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department
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