CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION
                      NEWS RELEASE


For Immediate Release: February 14, 1995
More Information Contact: Rob Schlichting - (916) 654-5159



 ENCINA WASTEWATER AUTHORITY HONORED FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY


The Encina Wastewater Authority in Carlsbad has been named an
Energy Efficiency Showcase by the California Energy 
Commission, which praised Encina's resourcefulness in saving 
energy.

The Encina treatment plant is one of only 16 wastewater 
facilities to be selected for the Commission's Energy 
Showcase project.  Ten water supply districts were also 
selected from the more than 4,000 water and sewer agencies in
California.

"The Showcase program was designed to reward and spotlight 
energy efficient water facilities like Encina," explained 
Commissioner Jananne Sharpless of the Energy Commission.  
"With their innovative approaches to energy use, the 
operators of the Encina facility serve as a model for other 
water professionals around the state."

The Encina Wastewater Authority was singled out for its 
Energy Management Program, which reduces electrical use 
during higher priced on-peak times of the day.  Its sewage 
treatment system also boasts high efficiency motors that use 
less electricity and variable frequency drives that pump 
water more efficiently.

"We also generate some of our own electricity, using a 
combination of purchased natural gas and bio-gas that results
naturally from the sewage treatment process," said Encina 
General Manager Richard Graff.  The facility boasts a 
$3 million electrical cogeneration system.  Waste heat from 
its engines is even used to provide heating and cooling for 
the plant itself.

"Energy efficiency can be as simple as using natural lighting
wherever possible in our buildings," Graff said.  "We have 
also converted our lighting fixtures to efficient fluorescent
models which take lower-wattage bulbs, further cutting our 
electrical bills.  "When it comes to energy efficiency, we 
find that every little bit helps," Graff concluded.

As a participant in the Energy Showcase project, Encina will 
serve as a demonstration facility, allowing other agencies to
learn from its accomplishments.  

"The Energy Commission is encouraging every water supply 
district and every wastewater agency in the state to become 
as energy efficient as possible," said Sharpless.  "It makes 
good business sense.  Californians spend over half a billion 
dollars a year to pump and treat their water and sewage.  If 
every agency could cut its energy bill by 10 percent, the 
savings statewide would result in an additional $50 million 
a year that could be used to replace old pipes and aging 
infrastructure, improve water quality, and increase the 
amount of water recycling."

The Encina Wastewater Authority serves 220,000 people in San 
Diego County.  It processes sewage from a 126 square-mile 
area, and has six member agencies:  the Buena and Encinitas 
sanitation districts, the Leviadia County and Vallecitos 
water districts, and the cities of Vista and Carlsbad.


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For more information, contact: 

Richard W. Graff, 
General Manager, Encina Wastewater Authority, (619) 438-3941

Rob Schlichting, California Energy Commission, (916) 654-5159




End of file

File Name: 95-02-14_Encina_Wastewater_Honore