Free toilets distributed

The event was part of an effort to reduce future water demand in Orange County based on a projected large increase in population in California and Orange County in the near future.

Each new toilet [1] can save between 25 gal. and 50 gal. per day, depending on the size of a family. The ultra low-flush toilets can pay for themselves in water savings within five years, while the water savings may continue for another 15 years, authorities said. The old toilets, which must be returned to the ocwd, will be crushed and used for road base.

OCWD estimated the program will save about $700,000 in water per year, with the water savings increasing as more low-flush toilets are installed each year.

A second toilet giveaway was scheduled late in October. The Orange County Sanitation District is the largest wastewater treatment system west of the Mississippi River, serving 2.2 million residents in northern and central Orange County.