From Channel to Tap: The Potential for Stormwater as a Source for Reuse in Two San Diego Sewersheds

The County of San Diego’s Stormwater Capture and Use Feasibility Study investigates the potential for regional stormwater capture and beneficial use. Among these uses is augmentation to local water reclamation plants using storage parcels across sewersheds by discharging captured stormwater to sanitary sewers. To determine how much stormwater can be captured and conveyed to a downstream plant, parcel storage potential and sewer system capacity were evaluated. Two sewersheds served by water reclamation plants were identified in the San Diego region as examples for evaluation. A parcel feasibility evaluation and sewer capacity models, combined with the results of a hydrologic model determined that sewershed-wide capture can result in stormwater augmentation accounting for up to five percent of influent to these plants. This study showed that sewershed-wide capture can augment water reclamation plants, but largescale augmentation requires larger storage footprint and rigorous research on the effects of stormwater on treatment processes.