The city of Carpinteria is taking a serious look at launching a recycled-water treatment system, and officials could make a decision on the project by the end of this year.

In a special joint meeting Monday, officials from the Carpinteria City Council, the Carpinteria Valley Water District and the Carpinteria Sanitary District heard results from a year-long effort to craft a recycled-water facilities plan.

All the agencies signed an agreement to share costs of the study, which was partially funded by the State Water Resources Control Board. That entity must accept the facilities plan in order for the city and agencies to seek construction grants and low-interest loans.

The technology is there, RMC Water and Environment consultant Rob Morrow said, but obtaining public acceptance and funding are another story.

Under the proposed plan, Carpinteria would conduct advanced treatment on wastewater that heads to the Sanitary District instead of allowing the byproduct to flow into the ocean, water district engineer Bob McDonald said.

Once the water is clean enough to drink, the city would inject it back into groundwater basins, allowing at least six months for the water to work through the basin to the nearest well.

According to the recycled-water facilities plan, Carpinteria could adopt a groundwater recharge system that — with injection wells and pipelines — would require $21 million in capital funds and another $1 million to operate annually.

Historically, one-third of Carpinteria’s water supply comes from its groundwater basin, with two-thirds from Lake Cachuma allotments and the rest from the state delivered to Cachuma.

The new system would allow Carpinteria groundwater to make up half of local water supplies, an especially beneficial boost in reliability during ongoing drought.

McDonald said treated water would be cleaner than rainfall coming off roads and soaking into the ground.

“This has been a very rewarding and good effort,” he said. “I’m very excited about it.”

The study showed the water district’s area encompasses just over 11,000 acres, or 17.3 miles, from the Toro Canyon area to the Ventura County line.

The city provides domestic water service to approximately 15,700 people, and agricultural water to 3,200 acres of irrigated crops.

The plan wouldn’t prevent local farmers from turning to their wells, Morrow said, it just builds on the existing system.

Because Carpinteria’s agricultural demand is significant and farms are spread out — not unlike city water district meters — Morrow said the cost to serve those customers was more expensive than expected.

Ag irrigation has higher water quality standards that require more salt be taken out of recycled water, he said.

“One of the biggest costs is the pipes getting it to the customers,” Morrow said. “There is kind of a race to claim that money right now.”

More than $7 billion was made available in grant funding via a 2014 state water bond, Proposition 1. He estimated Carpinteria could receive about $6 million if accepted.

Morrow said costs would be comparable to what the city pays now with added ecological benefits to groundwater basins.

One water district board member calculated $33 would be added to each person’s water bill each month, although an exact amount won’t be known until details are worked out.

Officials were worried about what happens in years of consecutive rainfall, but Morrow said the facilities could always be turned off and restarted.

Public speakers were mostly in favor, questioning the viability of the technology, and if it would be affected if left dormant like Santa Barbara’s desalination plant.

“What is the cost of running out of water?” said Heal the Ocean executive director Hillary Hauser. “We wouldn’t be advocating for it if it were dangerous. There’s no time like now.”

According to Morrow’s timeframe, a grant could be secured as soon as 2018, with recycled water facilities starting up in 2019.

Next steps include public outreach, nailing down real estate for the new system, coordinating with regulatory agencies, and collaborating with groundwater experts to compile more local data.

— Noozhawk staff writer Gina Potthoff can be reached at gpotthoff@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.