Thanks to a $75 annual parcel fee paid by property owners in MMWD's service area, the district has been able to invest more than $74 million since 1997 in fire flow and seismic-related improvements to the water system. "Fire flow" is the term used by firefighters to describe how much water can be delivered through one or more hydrants to fight a fire at a specific location.

Much of MMWD's 900-plus miles of pipe was installed before today's fire flow standards were established, so this investment is significantly improving the water system's fire-fighting capacity. Collectively, funds raised from the fee have financed the replacement of more than 66 miles of pipe throughout the district's service area in addition to the district's regular pipeline replacement program, which averages 8.5 miles per year.

The fire flow fee is collected through the property tax bills. Initial payments for this year are due December 10, 2013. More information is available here.

The MMWD Board of Directors recently approved renewing the district's contract with the Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District (LGVSD) for using LGVSD's treated wastewater as the source water for MMWD's recycled water treatment plant. MMWD has been producing recycled water from LGVSD treated wastewater since 1988 to reduce the demand for potable water.

MMWD's recycled water plant saves 600 acre-feet* of potable water each year, an amount that is equivalent to the water use of approximately 1,800 single-family households. The recycled water plant is located in north San Rafael and serves 325 customers in Terra Linda, Marinwood, Santa Venetia, and the Marin Civic Center.

The three-year contract goes before the LGVSD board for approval before becoming effective on December 31.

MMWD also recently entered into two agreements to conduct feasibility studies to expand the use of recycled water in Marin. One agreement is with the Central Marin Sanitary Agency (CMSA) in San Rafael and the other is with the Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin (SASM) in Mill Valley. The study with CMSA will update recycled water demand for central Marin and potentially evaluate the cost of retrofitting San Quentin Prison to accept recycled water for toilet flushing. The study with SASM will evaluate the potential demand for recycled water in southern Marin.

Both studies are partially funded by state grants. MMWD and the two wastewater treatment agencies will contribute the remaining funds.

All three contracts were approved by the MMWD Board of Directors at the November 6 meeting.

*one acre-foot is 325,851 gallons

Marin Covenant Church on North Redwood Drive in San Rafael is MMWD's newest recycled water customer. The church recently completed a new addition, which includes 15 toilets that will be flushed with recycled water. Recycled water, similar in quality to swimming pool water, is primarily used for irrigation, but it is also used for toilet flushing. Other uses include car wash facilities, cooling towers and commercial laundries.