Creating a Sustainability Index for Water Planning in Southern California

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Creating a Sustainability Index for Water
Planning in Southern California Presented
at AWWA ACE-09 June 18, 2009 Dan RodrigoVice
PresidentCDM523 West Sixth Street, Suite
400 Los Angeles, CA 90014
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What is Sustainability?

• Finding the right balance between economic,
  environmental and social needs
• Taking a holistic, interconnected perspective
• Consideration of thelong-term

Economic
Environment
Social
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Why is Sustainability Important in Water Supply
Planning?

• With limited resources, its critical to consider
  multiple benefits
• Stakeholder involvement in decision-making
  requires new paradigm
• Sustainability is reliability

Economic
Reliability
Environment
Social
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Understanding the Water Cycle
In the past, cities developed new water supplies
often from far distances, discharged wastewater
into receiving waters, and diverted stormwater
away from city into receiving waters.
dryweather
WaterSupply
Wastewater
Stormwater
wetweather
ReceivingWaters
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Integration of Water Resources Leads to
Sustainability
Sustainable cities will reuse wastewater, reduce
stormwater and find ways to beneficially reuse
it, and reduce the need for importing water
supplies in other words become more
self-sufficient.
dryweather
WaterSupply
Wastewater
Stormwater
wetweather
ReceivingWaters
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Traditional Economic Comparison of Water Supply

• Cost of Water
• Cost of Water Treatment
• Cost of Conveyance

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Expanded Cost View (Source to Disposal)

• Cost of Water
• Cost of Water Treatment
• Cost of Conveyance
• Cost of Wastewater Treatment
• Cost of Disposal (Outfall)

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Sustainability Goes Even Further

• Cost of Water
• Cost of Water Treatment
• Cost of Conveyance
• Cost of Wastewater Treatment
• Cost of Disposal (Outfall)
• Reliability Adaptability
• Environmental Impacts
• Societal Preferences

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Major Imported WaterSystems for Southern CA
State Water Project
Los Angeles Aqueducts
Colorado River Aqueduct
Los Angeles
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Creating a Sustainability Index for Water Supply
in So. California

• Water Supply Options
• New State Water Project Supply
• Groundwater Recovery (Brackish Desalination)
• Seawater Desalination
• Traditional Recycling (Tertiary)
• Advanced Recycling (MF/RO for indirect potable)
• Conservation (Smart Irrigation)
• Urban Runoff Reuse

• Data from the following CDM Water Supply Studies
  and IRPs
• City of San Diego
• City of Los Angeles
• Rancho California WD
• Eastern MWD
• Western MWD

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Supply Options Evaluated at the Margin
ProjectedWater Demands
Margin
Existing Local Water Supplies
Existing Imported Water Supplies
2005
2010
2020
2030
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Tracking Water Supply from Source to Disposal
UsingSystems Model
300 miles of conveyance
WTreatment
IndoorUse
OutdoorUse
WWTreatment
UrbanRunoff
20 ofOutdoor use
Outfall
ReceivingWaters
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Tracking Water Supply from Source to Disposal
UsingSystems Model
300 miles of conveyance
WTreatment
Reduces importedwater and regionaltreatment
costs, and reduces CO2 emissions or is CO2 neutral
IndoorUse
OutdoorUse
WWTreatment
UrbanRunoff
20 ofOutdoor use
Outfall
ReceivingWaters
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Tracking Water Supply from Source to Disposal
UsingSystems Model
300 miles of conveyance
WTreatment
Reduces importedwater and regionaltreatment
costs, and significantly reduces CO2 emissions
IndoorUse
OutdoorUse
WWTreatment
UrbanRunoff
20 ofOutdoor use
Outfall
ReceivingWaters
Reduces costs for outfalland reduces flows to
receiving waters
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Tracking Water Supply from Source to Disposal
UsingSystems Model
300 miles of conveyance
WTreatment
Reduces importedwater and regionaltreatment
costs, and significantly reduces CO2 emissions
IndoorUse
OutdoorUse
WWTreatment
UrbanRunoff
20 ofOutdoor use
Improves water quality going to receiving waters
Outfall
ReceivingWater
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Tracking Water Supply from Source to Disposal
UsingSystems Model
SWPSupply
300 miles of conveyance
WTreatment
Reduces importedwater and regionaltreatment
costs, and significantly reduces CO2 emissions
IndoorUse
SmartIrrigation
OutdoorUse
WWTreatment
lt10 ofOutdoor use
UrbanRunoff
Improves water quality going to receiving waters
Outfall
ReceivingWaters
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True Cost of Supply Options
1800
1600
1400
1200
1000
Unit Cost (/AF)
800
Water
600
400
200
0
State Water Project
Urban Runoff Reuse
Advanced Recycled
Traditional Recycled
Groundwater Recovery
Seawater Desalination
Conservation (Smart Irrigation)
Including surface treatment
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Reliability and Adaptability Score
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Habitat Impacts
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CO2 Emissions (lbs/AF)
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Societal Preference
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Creating the Sustainability Index

• Uses technique called multi attribute
  rating(Criterium Decision Plus software)

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CDP Software Ranks Options Shows Trade-Offs
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How Supply Options Rank
Water Cost
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
TraditionalRecycled
SWP Supply
Conservation
GroundwaterRecovery
AdvancedRecycle
SeawaterDesalination
Urban RunoffReuse
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Conclusions

• Expanding costs to include wastewater and
  disposal gives a more accurate view of the
  economic impacts
• But only when you add all sustainability
  indicators do you get the full comparison
• Do the results mean that Southern California
  should abandon its SWP supply?
• Of course not! All other options cannot meet
  both marginal demands and replace existing SWP
  supply but these other options at the margin
  have merit and should be examined seriously

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QUESTIONS ?