Innovative Project Receives Go-Ahead from State Officials

The Board of Directors for the West Valley Water District (WVWD) are pleased to announce that the State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water has approved a permit for the operation of a Groundwater Wellhead Treatment System beginning this summer to remove perchlorate, nitrate, and trichloroethylene from two local drinking water wells. Perchlorate - both a naturally occurring and man-made chemical used in rocket fuel, fireworks, flares, and explosives – is present in the Rialto-Colton Groundwater Basin and attributed to past military and manufacturing operations in the area. The City of Rialto and the West Valley Water District shut down affected wells and constructed specialized water treatment facilities to treat water from some of the wells. However, this treatment is not cost effective and becomes increasingly expensive as higher contamination sources are treated. This new first in the nation project uses ground-breaking, cost-effective technology approved by the State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water to utilize a natural process called bioremediation to remove perchlorate from drinking water supplies. Dr. Clifford O. Young, Sr., President of the Board of Directors hailed the announcement on Monday, “We are thrilled to be at the forefront of new technologies and treatments, bringing innovation to better serve our customers and deliver clean drinking water to our community.” Bioremediation uses microscopic organisms already present in groundwater to consume harmful chemicals. After facilitating this natural process that does not use any harmful chemicals, the water is then sent through traditional water treatment processes before it enters the drinking water system. This ensures that the water will meet state and federal drinking water standards for our community, while lowering the cost of treatment and producing little to no waste. “This state-of-the-art facility helps address a long-standing community concern over perchlorate contamination in our local wells. With this approval, we can reopen two closed wells and boost our supply of water as the state seeks to recover from the drought,” stated Linda Gonzalez, Vice President of the Board of Directors, “Our community will be forever grateful to the late Senator Nell Soto for being a champion on this issue, fighting to bring clean water to our community.” WVWD serves the communities of Bloomington, Colton, Fontana, Rialto and parts of an unincorporated area in San Bernardino and a segment of the Jurupa Valley in Riverside County.