In May of 2017, the California Coastal Commission (CCC) mandated the SLO South County Waste Water Treatment plant to begin planning for possible relocation of the Oceano facility by May of 2047. The CCC has legitimate concerns that the treatment plant could be compromised by climate change-induced sea level rise and creek flooding.
It also required a progress report every 10 years and specified studies be completed on: new locations safe from sea level rise and watershed flooding; detailed life expectancy of the current plant; detailed hazard response plan and risk assessment related to flooding and earthquakes; estimated costs to build a new treatment and drinking water standard purification plant for all municipal waste water from Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, and Oceano; estimated costs to demolish the existing plant and restore the property to a natural state; and estimated costs to build new distribution structures for treated water. The first 10-year progress report is due in 19 months. Most of the above required information has been created and shared with the CCC.
The CCC has provided a huge gift to the South County in laying out the groundwork for a comprehensive plan to secure a new treatment plant while at the same time creating a state-of-the-art municipal wastewater reclamation and purification operation. It would create millions of gallons of “new water” on a daily basis for South County and create water security for decades to come.
Water insecurity is perhaps the most acute environmental issue we face in our communities.
This legacy project will create water security for our great-great-grandchildren.
The existing treatment plant is old and vulnerable. Studies estimate it would need more than $100 million over the next 22 years in maintenance and repairs. Its replacement is inevitable, and now is the time for our communities to come together in this effort to protect our water resources into the future.
We can use the CCC’s “gift” of this planning mandate as a regional water management blueprint. At this time, there are billions of dollars in planning and construction grants from state and federal sources. Now is the time to embrace and mobilize as communities working together to create a modern water recycling facility and be a model for doing it right.
We need elected leaders who have the vision and understanding necessary to seize this opportunity and push the process forward on behalf of all who live in Arroyo Grande, Grover Beach, and Oceano. We need citizens who are educated and engaged in the process. We need to be ready and at the front of the line when it is time to seek funding.
Charles Varni
Oceano
This article appears in Oct 23 – Oct 30, 2025.