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Program Provides Multiple Benefits: Environmental, Social, And Financial In a water-scarce region such as the North Bay, one of the main benefits of a water reuse program is the offset to limited potable water supplies. With a goal of 33,000 AFY at the end of Phase 2, the program will provide a reliable water supply as communities prepare for drought, climate change, and the competing demands from agriculture, development, and the environment. With the NBWRP's multiple-benefit approach, Phase 2 projects are being carefully designed to address numer- ous environmental issues, including the effects of sea- level rise on member agen- cies' facilities. For example, the Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District is consider- ing an upgrade to an exist- ing storage pond that would include design elements, such as raising of levees, which would provide flood protection, increased stor- age, and protection from sea-level rise. A significant benefit of the program is that it allows agency members to share costs for planning, engi- neering, and environmental studies — costly studies they could not afford to conduct individually. Members also benefit from shared federal and state advocates and have access to expertise often beyond the reach of small districts. Though program costs are shared, members implement their own projects, thereby incrementally contributing toward regional supply reliability. In an effort to more accurately assess the value of invest- ments in the program, the NBWRP is considering the use of a triple-bottom-line (TBL) economic assessment during Phase 2 to identify, quantify, and (to the extent possible) monetize the many financial, social, and environmental benefits that the program generates for the region. A TBL assessment would examine the values of restoring key environmental assets, such as salt marshes along the Pacific flyway, enhanc- ing in-stream flows and riparian habitat for threatened and endangered species, and protecting groundwater supplies. It would look at the social value of agricultural and municipal water supply reliability and local control over water sup- plies. From a financial perspective, a TBL assessment would analyze the avoided costs for potable water supplies and the avoided wastewater disposal or storage costs. A Water Reuse Model For Other Regions By working from a watershed perspective to develop recycled water as a new water supply, the NBWRP serves as a model for how communities can work together to plan for self-sufficiency and, in turn, gain supply reli- ability using recycled water, yielding a variety of benefits. In recent months, the NBWRP has provided outreach to key members of the water community in the western U.S., including the Texas Water Conservation Association, Western States Water Council, Association of California Water Agencies, National Water Resources Association, WaterReuse Association, and the Family Farm Alliance. Its outreach efforts have focused on enlisting support for proposed federal legislation that would provide new tools and funding for water infra- structure projects across the West. The 21st Century Reclamation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (RIFIA) proposes to aggregate and amend exist- ing Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) authorities to provide assistance to the NBWRP and other water managers across the West. There are three key "tools" addressed in RIFIA: federal- ly guaranteed loans; transfer of title of reclamation facili- ties or elements of facilities; and Integrated Regional Water Management and regulating storage-competi- tive cost-shared grants. Cities, counties, and states throughout the water-scarce West are searching for new and creative ways to conserve limited water supplies and get the greatest return on their infrastructure investments. The NBWRP has developed a successful model that addresses water supply short- ages from a watershed perspective and invests in diverse recycled water projects that provide multiple benefits to support the region's way of life. By approaching water recycling from a regional water supply perspective, the program has been able to partner with the Bureau of Reclamation and the state of California and has been suc- cessful in receiving support for its projects. As a group of water and wastewater agencies in three counties, the NBWRP has been able to accomplish together what would not be possible individually. Water Reuse wateronline.com ■ Water Online The Magazine 42 Barry Dugan works with Data Instincts, Public Outreach Consultants (Windsor, CA), which provides public outreach services to the North Bay Water Reuse Program and other water-related projects, including recycled water, groundwater, desalination, and water conservation. He has more than 30 years of experience in journalism, public outreach, and communications. The NBWRP provided a 3.5-mile pipeline that carries water to a salt pond that is being restored as part of the Napa-Sonoma Marsh Restoration Project. The recycled water is also available to grape growers along the route in the Napa Carneros region, where water is scarce. 3 8 _ V E R T _ 0 2 1 4 E Z i n e _ M B W R P _ D G . i n d d 3 38_VERT_0214 EZine_MBWRP_DG.indd 3 1 / 3 1 / 2 0 1 4 1 : 2 1 : 3 3 P M 1/31/2014 1:21:33 PM