There is a great need for recycled water in Texas. As the population continues to grow (some estimates predict that it will double in the next fifty years), there will be an increased demand on limited water supplies. Combine this with recent droughts and you have a water crisis.

Recycled water is an environmentally sustainable solution to this growing problem. It is more cost-effective than many other options, and requires less land than building a new reservoir. It can be implemented quickly when infrastructure is already in place, and can even be beneficial to local wildlife.

So, how does it work? Used municipal water that has been treated in wastewater plants is usually sent downstream. With water recycling, however, this water is reclaimed and purified to a point that it can be returned safely to a city’s water supply. This can be done in two different ways. The water can either be naturally filtered through specially created wetlands (which provide beneficial habitats for local wildlife) or it can be sent to specialized facilities that use high-tech membranes and other processes to purify the water.

In Texas, several water purification wetlands already exist, including East Fork Wetland outside Dallas and George W. Shannon Wetlands at Richland-Chambers Reservoir. These particular wetlands take in water from the Trinity River, and clean it naturally via aquatic plants, bacteria, and sunlight. The plants and bacteria remove chemicals and other waste products from the water, after which the water can be returned to the municipal supply.

As in many other communities that have made efforts to increase municipal water recycling, some Texas cities are seeing a lack of support for water recycling from their residents. Texas Conservation Alliance hopes to change public perception of water recycling with education programs, videos, and exhibits This is especially important in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, where the current water supply is much less than what will be needed in the near future. Implementing large-scale water recycling efforts now will save taxpayer money and prevent the need for building new reservoirs that can be disruptive to humans and other wildlife.