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California Water Today 79 Figure 2.5 Groundwater dependence varies widely across California 100 90 Wet year 80 Dry year a) 70 60 0 3 50 rn_6 40 o—� 30 a " 20 Lns 10 0 SaSay 00Z (_o sadNo\ J-\\ -1evNp01Je� `\0,S, � \2\,, `6 o ° s`° S° o doa ° Lo \ asta�e�`de S C SOURCE:California Department of Water Resources(2009). NOTES:The figure shows total groundwater withdrawals as a share of total gross water use in the urban and agricultural sectors in the period 1998-2005.The dry and wet year shares refer to 2001 and 1998,respectively. Groundwater overdraft and unregulated pumping is a source of grow- ing conflict among water users in many parts of the state,with repercussions including higher costs of pumping, aquifer damage from saltwater intrusion, reduced groundwater availability during droughts, above-ground infrastruc- ture damage from sinking lands, and environmental damage to wildlife in adjacent streams (Chapters 3,5,6). Apart from natural reuse,water reuse also can involve more engineered(and more expensive)treatment and recycling of urban wastewater.The volumes are still quite small: 0.2-0.5 maf/year by the mid-2000s—or about 0.5 percent to 1 percent of California's agricultural and urban use.4 The amount might rise considerably—to 2 million acre-feet—in the next few decades(Recycled Water Task Force 2003; California Department of Water Resources 2009). To date, recycled water has primarily been used for crop or landscape irrigation,because the stigma of treated wastewater has prevented potable reuse.However,several Southern California agencies are now looking to follow the lead of Orange 4. According to the state's Recycled Water Task Force(2003),over 200 treatment plants produced between 450 to 580 taf/ year by 2002.The most recent California Water Plan update estimates that recycled municipal water provided between 0.2 and 0.5 maf/year between 1998 and 2005(California Department of Water Resources 2009).