City of Cerritos logo

Skip to Content | Footer | Accessibility

 


Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logoYouTube logoX logo

E-News signup for e-mail/text updates

 

Water Utility

Updated June 13, 2023

City of Cerritos Water Department Development Procedures and Standards

The City's Water Utility maintains approximately 16,000 water service connections citywide; ensures that the water supply is uninterrupted; collects water samples on a weekly basis to make sure the water meets or exceeds all water quality standards; maintains the City's three wells, three system reservoirs containing a total of 24 million gallons of water, approximately 177 miles of water transmission lines and 1,646 fire hydrants; and operates a recycled water distribution system of approximately 25 miles of pipe that serves more than 230 customers.

Water Supply

Cerritos water is tested regularly and continually meets or exceeds all state and federal quality standards. Our water supply is from two sources — the Metropolitan Water District (MWD) and local groundwater. The connection with MWD is located in the area of South Street and Palo Verde. In 2008, the City received about 57 million gallons, or 1.6 percent of the total water supply, from MWD.

The City also produces groundwater from three deep wells within Cerritos. These wells are drilled to a depth of between 700 and 1,000 feet. In 2008, these groundwater sources supplied about 3.6 billion gallons, or 98.6 percent of the City's total water supply. The water system also includes one 12-million-gallon reservoir and two six-million-gallon reservoirs that help the City meet demand during peak periods.

Water is distributed to consumers through a City-owned system of pipes, ranging in size from four inches to 36 inches in diameter. Approximately 181 miles of pipe supplies water to approximately 16,000 homes, businesses and industrial sites. All customers receive water through a water meter that measures the quantity used during a billing period. The City performs a water meter change out program to assure meters accurately reflect the water usage.

Annually, the City prepares a Consumer Confidence (Water Quality) Report that provides analysis results of all water samples collected during the year. These are distributed to all City water customers on an annual basis. For a copy of the Annual Consumer Confidence Report, or for any other water service related questions, please call (562) 407-2674.

The Water Utility's normal hours of operation are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The Water Division provides emergency water service on a 24-hour basis. To report water leaks in City streets or if a customer has a water-related emergency, City personnel can be contacted by calling the City's answering service at (562) 860-4018 after hours.

Back to Article Top