"This innovative project will provide Santa Margarita Water District with the energy independence to prepare for future environmental and economic challenges."Ībout Scale Microgrid Solutions: Scale is a vertically integrated distributed energy platform, with a core focus of designing, building, financing, owning and operating cutting-edge distributed energy assets that offer cheaper, cleaner, and more resilient power. "I cannot think of anything more important than access to reliable water, especially in high fire threat areas,'' says Ryan Goodman, CEO and co-founder of Scale Microgrid Solutions. The systems will also enroll in utility demand response programs and contribute to the overall stability of the grid during peak periods. Scale will own and operate the batteries for the District, prioritizing savings and carbon reduction during normal operations, and fully charging before announced power shutoff events to provide clean resiliency to the plants. The project is utilizing the state’s Self Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) to offset the initial cost of the batteries. Another benefit of the projects comes from the reduction in the District’s energy costs, which have been rising quickly in recent years.Īt the Chiquita Water Reclamation Plant, the energy storage system will pair with the site’s existing 1MW of solar PV to store clean energy generated during the day and discharge in the evenings when energy prices are high and grid power is predominantly provided by natural gas power plants. The projects will provide 8+ hours of clean backup power in the event of such an outage, eliminating the need for polluting diesel fuel. The facilities are in CPUC designated "High Fire Threat Territories'' and are prone to utility power shut offs due to possible or actual wildfires. The projects are designed to increase the resilience of the community’s water supplies while also reducing costs. Scale Microgrid Solutions (Scale) is working with the District to install, finance, and operate 12MWh of energy storage systems at their water and wastewater treatment facilities. The District is the second largest retail water agency in Orange County, by area, and third largest by customers served. The city and the district will need to discuss what will happen to the city’s existing staff, as well as how much voting power the city’s residents will get in governing the district.RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif., May 03, 2022-( BUSINESS WIRE)-Santa Margarita Water District (District) provides safe, reliable drinking water, recycled water and wastewater services to over 200,000 residents in nine unique communities in California.
The issue of tiered rates is just one of many that lay ahead in the negotiations. Having a tiered system doesn’t necessarily mean the district is running afoul of state laws, Santa Margarita Water District General Manager Daniel Ferons said. San Juan Capistrano does still have a tiered system, albeit with much less extreme highs and lows. “That’s not the way we do our water rates,” he said. The city lost a lawsuit in 2015 over its own tiered structure. But foreshadowing what lays ahead for the city as it enters into the negotiation, a Capistrano Beach resident Richard Gardner noted the district’s use of a tiered rate structure. Most public commenters at the meeting spoke in support of Santa Margarita Water and its projects’ potential benefits to the city.
The district is also building the Trampas Canyon Reservoir that can hold 1.6 billion gallons of recycled water, it said. It could collect billions of gallons of water in a year, the district said.
Santa Margarita Water is leading the San Juan Watershed project, which includes putting inflatable rubber dams where Trabuco and San Juan creeks meet in the city to capture runoff water that would flow out to the ocean. Maryott said Santa Margarita Water’s projects could better insulate the city’s system from droughts and disasters, such as an earthquake that can affect imported water pipelines. All three proposed significant improvements to the city’s water and sewer infrastructure.
The transfer to one of the larger water districts should result in initial modest reductions in water rates, followed by more stable increases, officials have said.Įach district stressed its perceived strength: Financial record for Moulton Niguel Water, the proposed Doheny desalination project for South Coast Water and the San Juan Watershed and the Trampas Canyon Reservoir for Santa Margarita Water. The city is one of very few in south Orange County that manages its own water operations. “There’s nothing that can be done about that.” “There is a little bit of this decision that’s a leap of faith,” Mayor Brian Maryott said.