From Toilet To Tap: Bottles Of Purified Recycled Wastewater Handed Out In Hollywood

HOLLYWOOD (CBSLA.com) — From the toilet to the bottle: The Orange County Water District and the Orange County Sanitation District handed out bottles of recycled wastewater Wednesday in Hollywood.

It was the first event in a yearlong statewide tour to educate the public about the technological advancements of treating local wastewater.

OCWD and OCSD are the first in the Western Hemisphere to bottle recycled water and distribute it, the agencies said.

The recycling process is done in Fountain Valley at the Groundwater Replenishment System, which is the world's largest facility to treat and purify wastewater and transform it into drinking water.

"You'll see this water tastes no different from any other water but can be a great source of additional water to help get us through our increasing demand for drinking water and through our increasing droughts," said Mehul Patel, Director of Water Production for the OCWD.

Here's an interesting fact. The law currently limits using this recycled water to replenish groundwater basins or for irrigation purposes. But a new state law allows water districts to bottle the recycled water on a limited basis and distribute it as an educational tool.