Denver Water has asked the state for permission to expand the allowed uses of reclaimed water. The proposal is in response to the recently approved Water Management Plan for the City of Denver. The plan calls for at least doubling the amount of recycled water that Denver Water provides by 2020. This would mean increasing the current 2.6 billion gallons a year to more than 5 billion gallons.[1]
“This is where the world is going,” said Denver Water Chief Jim Lochhead to the Denver Post. “Utilities are exploring this concept of ‘one water’, the right water quality for the right purpose, and making the most efficient use of water.”[2]
Denver Water has approximately 80 current customers that depend on reclaimed water, including the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, industrial plants, nine schools, thirty-four parks, five golf courses, and the Denver Zoo. The largest user is the Xcel Energy’s Cherokee power plant that uses almost a third of Denver’s recycled water supply. In an effort to create a larger customer base, Denver Water has proposed that reclaimed water be used for toilet flushing in commercial buildings, washing down livestock at the National Western Stock Show, and irrigating certain crops such as marijuana.[3]
If approved, Denver Water could set a precedent for other utilities across the state. Earlier this year, the state published its first water supply plan, which explicitly called for the use of recycled water as a conservation measure. The plan calls for cutting consumption state wide by 130 billion gallons – citing population grown and development for dwindling water supplies throughout the state. The plan also urges increasing the use of reclaimed water, encouraging the reuse of 19 billion gallons a year by 2050.[4]
Water Resources Advocate Laura Belanger, highlighted to the Denver Post the importance of Denver Water’s push for a wider application of reclaimed water. “Recycling water in our towns and cities is critical to stretching Colorado’s limited water supplies. To increase water reuse, Colorado needs to broaden the range of ways reclaimed water can be used. The new uses proposed by Denver Water are an important step in that direction.”[5]
1 Finley, Bruce. Denver Water wants to double the amount of recycled water used in the city. The health department’s not sure it’s safe. Denver Post, July 13, 2017. Web. http://www.denverpost.com/2017/07/13/denver-water-double-recycled-water/
2 Finley. Denver Water wants to double the amount of recycled water used in the city. The health department’s not sure it’s safe. http://www.denverpost.com/2017/07/13/denver-water-double-recycled-water/
3 Finley. Denver Water wants to double the amount of recycled water used in the city. The health department’s not sure it’s safe. http://www.denverpost.com/2017/07/13/denver-water-double-recycled-water/
4 Finley. Denver Water wants to double the amount of recycled water used in the city. The health department’s not sure it’s safe. http://www.denverpost.com/2017/07/13/denver-water-double-recycled-water/
5 Finley. Denver Water wants to double the amount of recycled water used in the city. The health department’s not sure it’s safe. http://www.denverpost.com/2017/07/13/denver-water-double-recycled-water/