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California officials recently approved new rules to let water agencies recycle wastewater and put it right back into the pipes that carry drinking water to homes, schools, and businesses.
加州官员最近批准了一项新规定，允许水务机构将回收处理过的废水直接输送到家庭、学校和企业的饮用水管道中。
It is a big step for California.
这对加州来说是一大步。
The state has struggled for many years to secure drinking water for more than 39 million people.
该州多年来一直在努力确保为3900多万人提供安全的饮用水。
It shows a change in public opinion on a subject that as recently as twenty years ago was met with criticism and ended similar projects.
这表明加州民众在废水入户问题上的态度发生了变化，这一做法在20年前曾遭到民众的批评，导致类似计划停止。
Since then, California has been through several extreme droughts.
自那以后，加州经历了多次极端干旱天气。
That includes the most recent one that scientists say was the driest three-year period on record.
其中包括最近发生的一次，科学家称这是有记录以来最干燥的三年。
And it left the state's water supply at dangerously low levels.
这使得该州的供水量处于极低水平。
"Water is so precious in California. It is important that we use it more than once," said Jennifer West.
詹妮弗·韦斯特说：“在加州，水非常珍贵。重要的是，我们使用它不止一次。”
She is director of WateReuse California, a group that supports recycled water.
她是支持再生水的组织WateReuse California的负责人。
California has been using recycled wastewater for many years.
多年来，加州一直在使用回收的废水。
A team has used it to make ice surfaces for the game of hockey.
一个团队利用回收的废水来制作冰球比赛使用的冰面。
It has been used to make snow for the sport of skiing.
该州将其用于滑雪场造雪。
And farmers use it to water their crops.
农民用回收的废水来浇灌农作物。
But it has not been used directly for drinking water.
但该州没有直接将回收的废水用于饮用水。
Orange County, a suburban area of Los Angeles, operates a water cleaning system that recycles wastewater and then uses it to refill underground aquifers.
位于洛杉矶郊区的奥兰治县运营着一个水净化系统，该系统回收废水，然后将其用于补充地下含水层。
That water then mixes with the groundwater for months before being pumped up and used for drinking water again.
这些水与地下水混合数月，然后再被抽出来用于饮用水。
California's new rules would let – but not require – water agencies to take wastewater, treat it, and then put it right back into the drinking water system.
加州的新规定允许——但不要求——水务机构回收废水，对其进行处理，然后将其直接输回饮用水系统。
California would be just the second U.S. state to permit this, following Colorado.
加州将成为继科罗拉多州之后美国第二个允许这样做的州。
It has taken officials more than 10 years to develop these rules, a process that included several studies by independent groups of scientists.
官员们花了10多年的时间来制定这些规定，在这个过程中，独立的科学家小组进行了一些研究。
A state law required the California Water Resources Control Board to approve these rules by December 31.
一项州法律要求加州水资源控制委员会在12月31日之前批准这些规定。
It was met with just a few days left.
距离截止日期只剩下几天的时间了。
The vote was met with approval by some of the state's biggest water agencies.
投票结果得到了该州一些最大的水务机构的支持。
All of which have plans to build huge water recycling plants in the coming years.
所有这些水务机构都计划在未来几年建造大型水回收厂。
A project in San Diego is aiming to produce nearly half of the city's water through recycling water by 2035.
圣迭戈的一个项目的目标是到2035年通过回收水生产该市近一半的水。
And the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California aims to produce up to nearly 570 million liters a day for its 19 million people.
南加州大都会水区的目标是每天为其1900万人生产近5.7亿升水。
Adel Hagekhalil is with Metropolitan Water.
Adel Hagekhalil就职于南加州大都会水区。
He said the new rules will permit new projects that have not yet been considered.
他说，新规定将允许开展尚未被考虑的新项目。
Water agencies will need public support to complete these projects.
水务机构将需要公众的支持才能完成这些项目。
That means proving to people that recycled water is not only safe to drink but also not dirty.
这意味着要向人们证明，回收水不仅可以安全饮用，而且不脏。
California's new rules require the wastewater be treated for all bacteria and viruses, even if they are not present in the wastewater.
加州的新规定要求水务机构必须对废水进行细菌和病毒处理，即使废水中不含有细菌或病毒。
That is different from regular water treatment rules, which only require treatment for known diseases, said Darrin Polhemus.
达林·波尔希默斯说，这不同于常规的水处理规定，常规的水处理规定只要求对已知疾病进行处理。
He is a director of the drinking water group for the California Water Resources Control Board.
他是加州水资源控制委员会饮用水小组的主任。
In fact, the treatment is so intense it removes all of the minerals that make fresh drinking water taste good.
事实上，这种处理方式非常强烈，去除了所有让新鲜饮用水口感良好的矿物质。
That means the minerals need to be added back at the end of the process.
这意味着在这个过程结束时需要重新加入矿物质。
"It's at the same drinking water quality, and probably better in many instances," Polhemus said.
波尔希默斯说：“经过处理的饮用水的质量是一样的，在很多情况下可能更好”。
Polhemus added that it takes time and money to build these treatment centers.
波尔希默斯补充说，建造这些废水处理中心需要时间和资金。
So, they will only be available for bigger cities at first.
因此，它们最初只适用于较大的城市。
I'm Gregory Stachel.
格雷戈里·施塔赫尔为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
