Wastewater Options for Los Olivos

The Los Olivos Community Service District (CSD) received a $75,000 grant to complete a third-party study to determine the most efficient and cost-effective wastewater options for Los Olivos, protect the groundwater, and preserve our quaint town’s history and open spaces.

POLO, a local nonprofit organization founded in 2003 to protect Los Olivos’s rural character and the Santa Ynez Valley, threw a much-needed lifeline to the CSD that was short on cash and seemed to be fresh out of inspiration.

The CSD will have spent more than $1 million taxpayer money in five years without constructing adequate test wells or commencing work on an appropriate design for a wastewater collection and treatment system.

Unfortunately, in 2019, the district board had community and Santa Barbara County agency buy-in for a “phased approach” that, had the CSD board pursued it, would already have the downtown commercial core off septic and, most likely, also would have decent public restrooms available for visitors.

The POLO grant presents an opportunity to get this project on track with a focus on a local solution to a local problem. POLO believes that how Los Olivos addresses its wastewater issues is the single biggest issue controlling the preservation of the character of Los Olivos and the Santa Ynez Valley.

It is vital that the Los Olivos residents fully understand the costs, benefits, and negatives of the various collection and treatment options. POLO’s $75,000 grant will evaluate the feasibility, design, and cost of various local wastewater collection and treatment options for the district.