Study: Californians Support Using Recycled Water

Xylem Inc. has released the results of a study indicating nearly three-quarters of Californians support using recycled water as an additional local water supply, regardless of water shortages. According to the study, although 2017 brought significant rainfall, Californians also remain very concerned about future droughts.

“California residents have not forgotten the pain of the recent drought,” said Ron Askin, Xylem Vice President of Water Utilities, North America. “We conducted this survey to better understand Californians’ perception about water supply and recycled water during both drought and non-drought conditions. It is encouraging to see continued strong and widespread support for recycled water as one solution to building water resilience in California.”

Other key findings from the report include:

  • Californians expect to receive rebates, reduced costs or other incentives for using recycled water. Almost 90 percent of respondents said they would support using recycled water if it reduced their monthly water bill, and the same percentage supports statewide actions by water agencies to adopt recycled water as a standard practice to prepare for future droughts.
  • The vast majority of Californians – 87 percent of survey respondents – reported that they are willing to use recycled water in their daily lives.
  • Almost 90 percent of respondents continue to believe that technologies used to purify water are effective, and California residents are more willing to use recycled water for personal household purposes after learning more about the technologies used to purify the water. For example, after reading about the treatment process, 75 percent of Californians surveyed in 2017 reported that they are likely to trust the treatment process that is used to purify recycled water.

“The findings underscore the importance of public education in building support for water reuse,” added Askin. “Respondents reported a higher likelihood to use recycled water for bathing, cooking or drinking after they read about the treatment process.”

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