Oceanside Introduces 360 Tour of Water Recycling Project

OCEANSIDE一 Oceanside released an immersive 360-degree video and tour of the San Luis Rey Water Reclamation Facility, and new home of Pure Water Oceanside which is set to go online in 2022.

The video was released as part of “Water Awareness Month” and is a step-by-step tour of the water purification process, with a unique 360-view of the facility.

By turning your phone, you can see a view of the plant from all directions while hearing a narration of the process.

“The video is intended to provide as much of a real experience as you can without someone actually being on site,” said Cari Dale, water utilities director for the city of Oceanside. “…It is a really unique way to experience the treatment facility without being there, and with the pandemic this is a valuable tool for us to reach out to the community to let people know about the project and what we’re doing at the San Luis Rey plant.”

Plant Supervisor Mike Campos leads the audience through a six-minute tour of the facility and the various steps the water goes through before being pumped out back to the community.

The water is flowed back to the community through purple pipes, to golf courses, the sports park, and the bird sanctuary, according to Campos.

The tour is a brief overview and explanation of the project that explains where the water starts in the Headworks, which removes physical objects like plastics and other garbage from the water, its then flowed through a series of steps before being moved to the final step of disinfection which leads through the Chlorine Contact Basin, CCB, and is then pumped out into the purple pipes and back to the city.

The water is used at places like golf courses, the sports park, and the bird sanctuary.

The facility treats eight million gallons of water a day, and the new reclamation plant treats up to three million gallons a day, according to Campos.

Participants also get a brief glimpse of the construction site where Pure Water Oceanside will be located.

Pure Water Oceanside is an advanced water purification facility that will create purified drinkable water to the community and is set to be online in 2022.

The facility will treat 4.5 million gallons of recycled water a day and will be the first of its kind in San Diego County, according to Dale.

The $71 million project is part of Oceanside’s goal to reduce dependence on imported water sources and create a local and sustainable water source for Oceanside.

Right now, Oceanside’s water supply is imported from the Sacramento Bay Delta and the Colorado River, this leaves the city susceptible to drought and other natural disasters that could affect the water supply.

Ideally this project, once online, will provide 30 percent of the city’s water supply according to the Pure Water Oceanside website.

The recycled water will go through a five-stage process that will remove particles, filter out bacteria and other chemicals, at stage four the water is injected into the Mission Basin where it will be extracted and treated again at the Mission Basin Groundwater Purification Facility.

Oceanside’s video tour is part of the city’s public outreach to garner support for the program and raise public awareness for the project.

“Really we are garnering support for the project and making sure people understand the value of water,” said Dale. “One of our goals is really outreach to the community and further understanding of where their tax dollars are being spent.”

Dale recommends watching the video on a cell phone or with a virtual headset to get the full experience.

To watch the video, see the YouTube link https://youtu.be/6FzBLkILoBQ. And to learn more about Pure Water Oceanside see the website at www.PureWaterOceanside.org.