Recycled Water is a vital resource, especially in an arid region like ours. It allows us to use reclaimed water for irrigation and industrial cooling and protect our precious potable water for consumption purposes.

Recycled water flows into the Mojave River.

VVWRA currently recycles millions of gallons of water everyday at its main plant in Victorville. The recycled water is returned to the Mojave River where it replenishes the  downstream aquifer. It is also used in the cooling towers at the nearby Victorville Power Plant.

In addition,  VVWRA has built two subregional water recycling facilities  in Hesperia and Apple Valley.

Subregionals  – VVWRA’s approach to both handling wastewater flow and sustaining local water supplies is to strategically locate subregional water reclamation plants (WRP's) in Hesperia and Apple Valley.  The WRPs are scalping facilities, meaning each treat a portion of the wastewater from the local collection system, reuse the treated recycled water in beneficial manners, and return solids to the sewer for treatment at the Main VVWRA plant.

Hesperia Subregional 

VVWRA began delivering recycled water to the City of Hesperia on April 4, 2022. The recycled water produced at the Hesperia Subregional is expected to be used for irrigation at the Hesperia Golf Course and area parks.

The Subregional WRPs will reduce the overall load on the collection system by creating recycled water, which is a valuable and increasingly important resource in this region. Another benefit of locating the Subregional WRPs farther up the watershed is the reduction of recycled water infrastructure and the subsequent energy costs of pumping the recycled water back up grade to the recycled water uses. This is also in keeping with the City of Hesperia’s Recycled Water Master Plan.

Apple Valley Subregional at Brewster Park

The recycled water produced at the Apple Valley Subregional will be used for irrigation at Brewster Park, the Civic Center, the Apple Valley Golf Course and other locations.

VVWRA has determined that the existing infrastructure, wastewater collection system and treatment facilities will require major expansions in order to convey and treat the wastewater from future growth. A major challenge that faces VVWRA is the limitations on the existing collection system. The existing trunk sewers that convey wastewater from the communities of Apple Valley and Hesperia are currently constrained and cannot accommodate future growth. The Subregional WRP's allow VVWRA to address the backbone collection system limitations without constructing miles of new trunk sewers to the main plant in Victorville.

The water supply in the High Desert is primarily groundwater and this resource is in an overdraft condition. The Mojave Water Agency also has an entitlement to State Water Project water and has historically not taken its full entitlement. A stipulated judgment (January 1996) requires the Mojave Water Agency to provide “makeup water” in order to achieve a water balance between the subareas. Water reclamation will help to reduce the burden upon the groundwater supply and State Water Project by increasing the efficiency at which the groundwater is used by offsetting some non-potable water demands. Recycled water also tends to be less expensive than potable water and as such provides an economic benefit to the end user of the recycled water. The Mojave Water Agency has identified, in their Regional Water Management Plan Update Phase 1, water recycling by VVWRA as a significant management tool.

The Subregional WRP's employ membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology to provide a high level of reliability and quality of recycled water. The membrane technology provides a positive barrier that improves the consistency of the recycled water quality as compared to conventional processes. Each WRP has been designed with the local community in mind. The use of MBR technology aids in the overall reduction of the footprint and minimizes the visual impact to the communities. The Subregional WRP's have been designed to be good neighbor facilities. The architecture of the facilities was selected to fit in with the neighboring communities. Most of the equipment at each site is located within buildings and the main noise culprits, blowers, are located underground within concrete basements and noise enclosures to reduce their potential to impact the community. The Subregional WRP's will discharge waste solids back into the collection system for treatment at the main VVWRA plant in Victorville. Odor control is included at each of the Subregional WRP's.