Photo Credit: In-Site Landscape Architecture, Inc.
Water is necessary for life. We live on a blue planet, but only 2.8 percent of the earth’s water is fresh water; the remainder is salt water. Today, fresh water is extraordinarily precious in Southern California because of the limited rainfall and especially—over recent years—the state’s historic drought. A large percentage of Southern California’s water is imported, which takes both large amounts of energy and infrastructure, making fresh water very expensive.
The Past
In 1959, the most pressing issue in Santee, Calif., (located in San Diego County) was waste-water disposal. The city was faced with two alternatives: sign a 40-year contract and pipe the waste water 20 miles to a treatment plant, or recycle the water through a treatment process. The Padre Dam Municipal Water District (formerly the Santee County Water District and Rio San Diego Municipal Water District) chose the latter option and became pioneers in water recycling. Seven beautiful lakes were created, and in 1961 Santee Lakes Recreation Area opened to the public. Today, the state-of-the-art Ray Stoyer Water Recycling Facility, upstream of the preserve, feeds the seven lakes with 1-million gallons of recycled water per day and creates the same amount per day for irrigating local parks, schools, and landscapes through 32 miles of irrigation pipelines.
The Present
Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve is an award-winning, privately owned, 190-acre park destination, offering camping, fishing in year-round stocked lakes, boating, recreation, and an environment perfect for bird watching and picnics. Its incorporated, sustainable use of recycled water has enabled the preserve to envision an ever-growing and evolving park at a time when many Southern California recreational areas suffer from a diminished water supply. By covering all its operation costs through user fees, the park is also financially self-sustainable, which is rare for a park system. Santee Lakes continues to serve as a model of conservation, sustainability, and tax-free recreation for over 750,000 visitors annually.