The Clearwater Project will protect local waterways by addressing aging infrastructure. The project involves constructing a new 7-mile, 18-foot diameter tunnel to convey cleaned water from the A.K. Warren Water Resource Facility (Warren Facility) in Carson to existing ocean outfalls located on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The Clearwater Project is the result of a multi-year planning effort that began in 2006 to identify improvements needed to ensure the reliability and future capacity needs of the main sewer system serving over 5 million people in Los Angeles County. The new tunnel will replace the existing two tunnels that are over 60 and 80 years old. The construction of the Clearwater project was approved by the Board of Directors in January 2019. Construction is underway and expected to be completed in 2029.

Pure Water Southern California (PWSC)

The Sanitation Districts have partnered with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) to produce up to 150 million gallons of sustainable, local water daily (MGD). Pure Water Southern California will accomplish this by employing a state-of-the-art purification process to produce high-quality water that will increase Southern California's water resiliency. The Sanitation Districts will construct preliminary and supplementary treatment processes needed to support the advanced water treatment system to be developed by MWD.

Our Board of Directors approved the initial agreement with MWD in November 2015. A 0.5 million gallons per day demonstration plant, known as the Grace F. Napolitano PWSC Innovation Center, began operation in October 2019. The Draft Environmental Impact Report was issued in May 2025. MWD and the Districts aim to complete the environmental review process by early 2026. PWSC will be delivered in phases, with the initial phase proposed to start construction in 2027.

The U.S. Department of Energy approves qualified project developers or Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) to complete ESPC projects. ESCOs develop, design, build, and arrange financing for projects that save or reduce energy and decrease operations and maintenance costs. ESCOs guarantee the savings realized from the project will cover the ESPC, thereby assuming the technical and performance risks associated with the project.

To date, the Sanitation Districts have initiated four ESPCs:  The JWPCP Replacement of Cryogenic Oxygen Plant Nos. One and Two project was approved by the Board of Directors in September 2020 and construction is anticipated to be completed by the end of 2026. The Valencia WRP North Aeration Process Improvements project was approved by the Board of Directors in June 2020 and construction is anticipated to be completed by the end of June 2025. The San Jose Creek WRP Stage III Process Air Compressor Replacement and Aeration Process Upgrades project is expected to begin in 2027. The Long Beach WRP Aeration System Improvements project is also planned to begin in 2027.

Valencia WRP Advanced Water Treatment Facility (AWTF)

The AWTF is now operational with a treatment capacity of 8 million gallons per day. The AWTF employs membrane filtration, nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis technologies to produce high-quality product water with chloride concentrations maintained below 100 mg/L, in compliance with the limit set by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board. The remaining construction work includes replacing temporary piping throughout the plant, completing the heat tracing system, and troubleshooting active alarms.

Sewer Rehabilitation Projects

To ensure the continuous protection of public health and the environment, the Sanitation Districts have embarked on a program to accelerate the rehabilitation of aging sewers. The Sanitation Districts have implemented an aggressive engineering design process to address the most critical unlined concrete sewers. In support of this effort, the Sanitation Districts completed a comprehensive risk assessment of all Sanitation Districts' sewers. A specialized software was utilized to evaluate multiple risk factors and assess each sewer pipe's likelihood and consequence of failure. All of the highest-risk sewer segments are anticipated to be rehabilitated by 2031.

In conjunction with the risk assessment and rehabilitation, a software model of the wastewater collection system's flow characteristics is in development. This hydraulic model will allow simulation of the sewer network under varying conditions, leading to the identification of capacity issues and overflow risks. The hydraulic model projects will be completed in 2028.

Emergency Regulatory Concerns

In response to more stringent discharge requirements, the Sanitation Districts have budgeted for potential multi-year projects at Long Beach, Los Coyotes, Pomona, San Jose Creek, Whittier Narrows, Saugus, Valencia, Lancaster, and Palmdale WRPs to address effluent temperature control and treatment for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The Sanitation Districts are actively monitoring regulatory developments related to PFAS and are aligning response efforts with our environmental and public health commitments. This includes facility monitoring, source identification, evaluation of treatment technologies, and support for legislation to phase out non-essential PFAS uses.

In parallel, the Sanitation Districts are responding to stricter effluent temperature limits on surface water discharges by conducting watershed studies and evaluating compliance strategies. Once the studies are completed, the scope and schedule for these projects will be refined.

Seismic Resiliency Program

The Sanitation Districts have initiated a Seismic Resilience Program to identify structural vulnerabilities and strategically prioritize seismic mitigation efforts. This initiative safeguards life safety, maintains uninterrupted operations, protects public health and the environment, and minimizes post-event repair costs. The program encompasses a thorough assessment of existing infrastructure, identifying mitigation measures, and systematically prioritizing construction projects in alignment with an established seismic evaluation policy. The seismic evaluation work is targeted for completion in 2032, with mitigation efforts likely continuing for decades.