Pure Water Soquel Project Construction Concludes, Bolstering Regional Water Security

Santa Cruz County, CA – The Soquel Creek Water District has announced the completion of construction for its Pure Water Soquel project, a critical initiative designed to combat seawater intrusion and replenish the critically overdrafted Santa Cruz Mid-County Groundwater Basin. This milestone marks a significant step towards ensuring a sustainable and reliable water supply for the communities of Soquel, Aptos, and Capitola.

The Pure Water Soquel project, a decade in the making, involves an advanced water purification process that will treat recycled municipal wastewater. This purified water will then be injected into the groundwater basin, creating a protective barrier against encroaching seawater and augmenting the region's primary freshwater source. The project is expected to be fully operational in late spring 2025, with systems testing currently underway.

With an estimated capital construction cost of approximately $180 million, the project has garnered substantial state and federal funding. This includes a $63 million implementation grant from the State Water Resources Control Board and a $30 million grant from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The significant investment underscores the project's importance for the region's long-term water resilience.

The Soquel Creek Water District has relied entirely on the Santa Cruz Mid-County Groundwater Basin for its water supply, which state authorities have designated as “critically overdrafted.” Over-pumping has led to seawater seeping into the freshwater aquifer, a challenge the Pure Water Soquel project directly addresses by recharging the basin with purified water. This approach also reduces the discharge of treated wastewater into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

The project's advanced purification center, located near Highway 1 and Chanticleer Avenue in Live Oak, employs state-of-the-science methods including ozone, microfiltration, reverse osmosis, and ultraviolet light with advanced oxidation. This multi-step process produces water purer than bottled water, which will then be conveyed through an eight-mile pipeline system to three seawater intrusion prevention wells for groundwater replenishment. Officials anticipate the project will produce up to 1,500 acre-feet of purified water annually.