Engineers with City consultant Tetra Tech are on-site at the City’s Waste Water Treatment Plant to conduct the ongoing pilot study for water reuse.
The study got underway last month and should conclude in early summer, according to Water Utilities Director Terry Lauritsen.
“This study is a requirement set forth by Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality regulations,” Lauritsen said. “We are testing different chemical and filter configurations to determine the most efficient combination to meet the treatment standards established by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ). In conjunction with this study, we are testing for items not regulated by the EPA or ODEQ to ensure not only the safety of this water source but the viability of the treatment for potential future regulations,” Lauritsen said.
“While we are still years out from meeting all of the regulatory steps that are required to operate the City’s water reuse program for potable use, the pilot study is an important step in that process”.
Water reuse has been an ongoing project since Oklahoma enacted the “Water for 2060” law, which made reuse a possibility in Oklahoma.
“Water reuse provides additional treatment before water is pumped and discharged into the Caney River upstream of the raw water intake in Johnstone Park,” Lauritsen said. “Once the system has cleared regulatory hurdles and ready for use, which, again, will not be for several years, this treated water will be used as an emergency source to supplement the water within the river in the event of a water crisis.”
Water reuse would only be utilized in the case of emergency, such as Stage 4 drought conditions.
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