Reasons why the Orange Water and Sewer Authority (OWASA) chose Cane Creek

Okun describes some of the reasons that OWASA chose Cane Creek over other bodies of water. Some rivers and lakes were simply too polluted to use and others would have required more expensive development. Okun mentions the possibility of a dual-use system, where residents would use different water lines for different purposes—a clean line for drinking and a less clean one for watering their lawns, for example. But creating more than one water line would be quite expensive; besides, "we're water rich."