Where else is purified recycled water used?

Purified recycled water has been used to replenish drinking water supplies in many parts of the world for up to 40 years, including the USA, UK, Singapore and Belgium.

Examples include:

• Washington, DC - Fairfax County Water Authority is a major water provider to Washington, DC. Part of its water comes from the Upper Occoquan Sewage Authority (UOSA) plant. Highly treated output from the plant supplies about 20 per cent of the inflow into the Occoquan Reservoir. Read more about Blue Plains Wastewater Treatment Plant, the largest advanced wastewater treatment plant in the world.
• Los Angeles - the Montebello Forebay Groundwater Recharge Project replenishes the groundwater basin underlying the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area and has been in operation since 1962.
• Singapore - the city has been using recycled water since 2003 for its drinking and industrial supplies
• Orange County - in the United States has been replenishing its groundwater supplies with recycled water since 1976.
• Veurne-Ambacht - a tourist region on the coast of Belgium, gets its water supply from groundwater basins which is recharged with purified recycled water.
• Essex - in the United Kingdom recharges its water supply with purified recycled water.

For more information, read the fact sheet, Water Recycling - Examples From Other Countries (PDF, 591 KB).