Cost Comparison of Water Projects

New research by Water in the West shows that groundwater recharge is a cheaper alternative to surface storage. In fact, researchers found that the cost of recharge is cheaper than many other water supply options at $90 to 1,100 per acre-foot, or at a median cost of $390 per acre-foot, which broadly agrees with published values.

Groundwater Recharge

Replenishing groundwater by putting water back into the ground (Cost based on 25th to 75th percentiles of studied projects, 2014 USD)
COST PER ACRE-FOOT

Reservoir Expansion

Raising dams to expand reservoirs, increasing their capacity to store water
COST PER ACRE-FOOT

Seawater Desalination

Removing salt from sea — or brackish — water to create a new supply
COST PER ACRE-FOOT

Copy this code to embed this chart on your site

VIEW FULL ARTICLE
A series of articles exploring the use and management of California’s precious resource.