Scaling Water Reuse Through Collaboration

Water reuse is a cornerstone of the OneWater movement. By recycling water for beneficial uses, communities gain a resilient and sustainable supply while protecting and enhancing the environment. From improving aquatic habitats and reducing nutrient discharges to creating new recreation spaces and boosting agricultural and industrial productivity, reuse offers multiple benefits that ripple through local economies, ecosystems and quality of life.

Yet, the path to implementation is rarely straightforward. Regulatory hurdles, governance complexity, funding constraints, risk perceptions, public acceptance and leadership gaps often slow progress. Overcoming these challenges calls for more than engineering. It requires collaboration, shared vision and trusted partnerships that can bring big ideas to life.

Turning shared goals into shared success

Jacobs is working alongside a team of world-renowned experts to help water organizations navigate these complexities through The Water Research Foundation (WRF) Project 5250 – Approaches to Build Strong Partnerships and Solidify Successful Interagency Reuse Projects. Supported by WRF funding and in-kind contributions from 11 collaborating organizations, the project aims to deliver practical guidance and a peer-to-peer network for professionals across the water sector.

The guidance will address six core areas critical to interagency success:

• Finding common cause – Aligning vision and leadership across partners
• Regulatory challenges – Building adaptable frameworks that work for all stakeholders
• Economics, financing and risk – Structuring projects for long-term viability
• Collaborative management – Creating partnerships that thrive over time
• Codifying trust – Using charters, agreements and contracts to formalize commitments
• Maintaining communication – Ensuring open, ongoing dialogue among partners

At the heart of this effort is a utility-tested toolkit and associated roadmap designed to help water organizations plan, negotiate and sustain impactful reuse programs. Complementing the toolkit will be a peer-to-peer networking forum for water utilities and sector professionals, creating space for sharing lessons learned, building trust and accelerating innovation in reuse.

The project is led by Shannon Spurlock, senior engagement specialist at the Pacific Institute. I am joined by Robert Raucher, Eric Rosenblum, Felicia Marcus and Dave Smith in providing technical, research and project management leadership support. Eleven participating utilities and agencies bring invaluable experience from across the United States: Clean Water Services, Hillsborough County, LAFTCO, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Metro Water Recovery, One Water Monterey, Orange County Utilities, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, South Platte Renew, Truckee Meadows Water Authority, Tucson Water and Jacobs. 

The toolkit is on track for completion in December 2025. The first peer-to-peer networking forum took place at the 2025 National WateReuse Symposium in Tampa, Florida. Next stops include the California WateReuse Symposium in San Diego (September 2025) and the 2026 National WateReuse Symposium in Los Angeles.

I will also discuss this topic at WEFTEC, Sept. 27 – Oct. 1, where I will speak to collaborations that advance a resilient water future. View our WEFTEC 2025 agenda here.

By breaking down barriers and fostering collaboration, this project is helping communities move beyond the “why” of water reuse to the “how” – ensuring sustainable, climate-resilient solutions become the norm.