Dunham: New water line benefits customers, supports local farmers
by Doug Dunham | EPCOR
EPCOR has received a $250,000 grant from the Water Management Assistance Program at the Arizona Department of Water Resources, important funding that will help a group of agricultural and residential water users in the San Tan Valley maintain a sustainable future water supply while also playing an important role in responsibly managing Arizona’s water for the future.
Prior to becoming the new owner, EPCOR served as interim manager of Johnson Utilities for the past 30 months. During that time, excess treated wastewater from the utility’s Pecan Wastewater Treatment Plant has periodically been released into the Queen Creek wash due to current capacity limitations at the plant. Put simply, there was nowhere else for it to go.
Reclaimed wastewater is a valuable resource in Arizona, and we wanted to find a better, beneficial use for these excess flows. At the same time, water users in the New Magma Irrigation and Drainage District between Queen Creek and Florence were facing potential water shortages as their CAP allotments were among the first to be impacted under the Lower Colorado River Basin Drought Contingency Plan.
