Orange County puts large water users under board review as groundwater headroom narrows
Orange County Utilities, Florida · Meeting date: October 27, 2026 · Published: October 28, 2026
Orange County Commissioners have approved a policy aimed at data centres, bottling plants and other high-intensity users as the utility faces capped groundwater allocations and a growing dependence on alternative water supplies. The ordinance creates additional capital and volumetric charges for users exceeding 100,000 gallons per day.
Key points
- The ordinance requires Board of County Commissioners approval for proposed high-intensity water users with demand above 200,000 gallons per day.
- Users exceeding 100,000 gallons per day will face an additional capital charge of $20.40 per gallon per day above the threshold.
- A $2.55 per thousand-gallon volumetric surcharge will apply to potable and reclaimed-water demand above 100,000 gallons per day from October 1, 2029.
- Orange County Utilities reported average demand of 72mgd last year against 100mgd of available capacity, including 9mgd from the Cypress Lakes alternative water-supply project.
Full report
Orange County has moved to regulate large non-domestic water demands through a new high-intensity water-user policy, introducing enhanced review and alternative-supply cost recovery as conventional groundwater resources remain capped.
Commissioners unanimously approved the ordinance on October 27. It establishes a high-intensity-user classification, review and appeal process, service limitations and additional rates for customers whose combined potable and reclaimed-water demand exceeds 100,000 gallons per day. The policy is intended to apply to uses such as data centres, water-bottling facilities and water-intensive manufacturing that do not primarily serve domestic demand.
The ordinance gives Utilities staff authority to determine whether a proposed use qualifies as high intensity. Applicants may appeal that determination to the Board of County Commissioners. Projects seeking more than 200,000 gallons per day will require final Board approval, giving elected officials a direct decision on whether that scale of non-domestic demand should receive service.
The financial mechanism is designed to recover the higher cost of alternative supply. In addition to standard connection charges, a user exceeding 100,000 gallons per day will pay an additional capital charge of $20.40 for each gallon per day above that threshold. The policy also establishes a $2.55 per thousand-gallon volumetric surcharge on water use above the threshold. That recurring surcharge takes effect on October 1, 2029, when the Cypress Lakes alternative water-supply plant is expected to be operational.
Orange County Utilities said average demand reached 72mgd last year. The utility has 100mgd of capacity, leaving 28mgd of headroom: 19mgd from groundwater sources and 9mgd allocated through the Cypress Lakes regional project in Osceola County. The utility said its St. Johns River Water Management District consumptive-use permits no longer provide increasing groundwater allocations as growth occurs.
The county has relied on reclaimed-water systems and conservation to moderate potable demand growth since the mid-2000s. Utilities also identified the Taylor Creek Reservoir project as a longer-term alternative supply that will be needed under its projected demand trajectory by 2045.
The ordinance requires high-intensity users to use reclaimed water first where it is available, preserving potable capacity. It also allows the utility to monitor customers that initially fall below the 100,000-gallon-per-day threshold and apply the policy if their demand later exceeds it.
Commissioners are scheduled to consider amendments to the water and reclaimed-water rate resolutions on November 10 to implement the volumetric charges.
This summary was generated by AI based on the source document and may contain errors.
Source: Board of County Commissioners, Orange County Utilities