San Juan Capistrano is one of Orange County’s most historic communities. While its rich history is part of what makes the city so special, portions of its water and wastewater infrastructure were built decades ago and now require ongoing rehabilitation and modernization to meet today’s reliability and emergency response standards.
Since assuming responsibility for San Juan Capistrano’s water and wastewater system in 2021, Santa Margarita Water District has invested more than $32.4 million in repairing, rehabilitating, and strengthening critical infrastructure throughout the community. Reservoirs have been rehabilitated, aging water and sewer pipelines have been repaired and inspected, pump stations have been upgraded, and critical monitoring systems have been modernized to improve the reliability of the services residents depend on every day.
SMWD has also made significant investments in the San Juan Groundwater Treatment Plant, upgrading treatment equipment and expanding the facility’s capacity from 2.4 million gallons per day to nearly 5 million gallons per day. This modernization strengthens SMWD’s local drinking water supply, helping reduce dependence on imported water while improving long-term water reliability…