The JPA Board of Directors unanimously approved the PEIR for the Pure Water Project Las Virgenes – Triunfo (PWP), providing a pathway for the construction of an AWPF to be located at 30800 Agoura Road in Agoura Hills. The vote clears the way for the next steps to bring a new local and drought-resilient drinking water supply to the region. Currently, the JPA is reliant on a single source of drinking water supply from Metropolitan Water District of Southern California via the State Water Project (SWP) to serve its customers, businesses, a n d o u t d o o r spaces. W i t h the future AWPF, up to 20% of JPA’s water needs will be created locally – r e d u c i n g the region’s dependence on i m p o r t e d water and helping to ensure long-term water supply reliability. The PWP was selected in 2016 through a stakeholder process that determined it to be the best option to protect Malibu Creek and bring a new, local source of water to the region. The project satisfies three specific criteria: complying with more stringent regulatory requirements for discharge to Malibu Creek, balancing seasonal variations in recycled water demand by maximizing it as a resource, and creating a valuable resource to supplement the region’s drinking water supplies. “This has been an important process and we are so excited to get to this significant moment,” stated Jay Lewitt, president of the board of directors for LVMWD and chair of the JPA. “As a water agency board member, our most critical and significant job is to ensure our customers have a reliable water supply. This project will do just that.” The PWP will take recycled water from the Tapia Water Reclamation Facility, which provides three stages of treatment, and send it to the AWPF where it will undergo three additional well-tested purification processes: membrane filtration, reverse osmosis, and ultraviolet light disinfection with advanced oxidation. The result is pure water. These tried-and-true technologies – reviewed and thoroughly tested by scientists, public health officials, engineers, and independent expert panels – are already in use across the globe. The advanced purification process creates the cleanest drinking water available by effectively removing bacteria, viruses, personal care products, pharmaceuticals, PFAS (forever chemicals) and other compounds of emerging concern. Once the water is purified, it REAL ESTATE will be blended with treated water from the SWP in Las Virgenes Reservoir for six months, which will serve as an environmental buffer. The water will then be treated through a third process at the existing Westlake Filtration Plant and distributed throughout the JPA’s service area. “We couldn’t be prouder to have embraced water reuse as a viable and responsible solution to our water shortage problems here in the Conejo Valley,” stated JPA board vice chair Leon Shapiro. “This will be an asset to all communities, residents, and businesses we serve for decades to come.” Las Virgenes – Triunfo Joint Powers Authority (JPA) was established between Las Virgenes and Triunfo Water & Sanitation Districts to treat wastewater within the Malibu Creek watershed. The JPA owns and operates the Tapia Water Reclamation Facility and the Rancho Las Virgenes Composting Facility.
