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Oct. 8, 2003
Reclaimed water for Sammamish Valley to flow from new source
King County Executive Ron Sims today recommended a reclaimed water solution for irrigation in the Sammamish Valley that will deliver more water than proposals now under consideration and save up to $20 million.
Sims said the proposed Brightwater wastewater treatment plant would be able to provide more reclaimed water and greater environmental benefits at less cost and with fewer construction impacts than building the demonstration reclaimed water production facility that had been discussed.
"This plan will meet the long-term needs of customers, potential users, tribes and affected jurisdictions for decades to come," Sims said.
Reclaimed water is wastewater treated to such a high level that it can be used safely for non-drinking water purposes such as irrigation. It is widely used in the southern and western parts of the nation for landscaping and industrial uses. Using reclaimed water would ensure that an equivalent amount of water would remain in the Sammamish River and groundwater.
The Sammamish Valley has long been identified as a prime area for using reclaimed water because of the concentration of golf courses, parks, farms and nurseries. King County's Regional Wastewater Services Plan adopted in 1999 directed the county to develop opportunities for reclaimed water to help meet the water needs of the region. King County had explored plans for building a reclaimed water facility on the western border of 60 Acres South Park north of Redmond.
"The potential for using reclaimed water is a factor that will weigh in the final site selection of the new Brightwater facility," Sims said. "Our decision this year about the advanced-treatment technology to use at either Brightwater site will increase our capability for producing reclaimed water."
There are two alternative plant locations being considered for the new wastewater treatment Brightwater plant that would provide the reclaimed water to the Valley. The sites are the Unocal site in Edmonds and the Route 9 site just north of Woodinville.
The projected cost of building a Sammamish water-reclamation facility was expected to be about $36 million. But if King County builds the Brightwater plant at Route 9, the cost of building a pipeline to carry reclaimed water from the plant to the Sammamish Valley could save up to $20 million. The savings from locating the plant at the Unocal site would be less because of the plant's distance from the Sammamish Valley, but it could still be done.
Sims plans to select the final Brightwater site after release of a final environmental impact statement on the project in November. Once the decision is final, the detailed plans for serving the Sammamish Valley will be made.
Because the Brightwater plant will not begin operating until 2010, Sims is also recommending that King County's Wastewater Treatment Division build a temporary or mobile water-reclamation facility to meet some water needs earlier in the Sammamish Valley.
That pilot plant, to be running by 2005, would provide from 75,000 to 500,000 gallons a day of reclaimed water. This temporary mobile facility could also demonstrate the technology and benefits of reclaimed water at other locations in the area. It could potentially be moved to a new location following the availability of reclaimed water from the Brightwater Treatment Plant.
"King County will work closely with local sewer agencies, local jurisdictions, elected officials, tribes and others in carrying out this plan," Sims said. "We've done that in planning both the Brightwater system and water reclamation facility, and we'll continue doing that to provide reclaimed water in the safest, most effective way possible."
King County's Wastewater Treatment Division protects public health and water quality by serving 18 cities, 15 sewer districts and more than 1.4 million residents in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. The regional utility now operated by King County has been preventing water pollution for nearly 40 years.
Updated: Oct. 8, 2003
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