El Paso Water, Texas, USA – Planned Treated Water Augmentation
Since 1985, the Hueco Bolson Recharge Project has produced water that meets drinking water standards for aquifer injection and infiltration at the Fred Hervey Water Reclamation plant (see El Paso 1).
But that is just one part of El Paso Water’s resource management strategy. El Paso Water has completed design for the Advanced Water Purification Facility and construction will begin in early 2025. El Paso Water successfully ran a pilot facility to test the proposed purification process as part of the permitting process. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) approved pilot facility data and design of the full-scale plant.
The AWPF will be next door to the existing Roberto Bustamante wastewater treatment plant and will produce about 10 million gallons of purified water per day. Highly treated wastewater will go through a redundant treatment process to include membrane technology, reverse osmosis, ultraviolet disinfection with advanced oxidation and granular activated carbon filtration and chlorination before it enters the distribution system. The Advanced Water Purification Facility will give El Paso a drought-proof source of safe and reliable water that meets all drinking water standards.
The Advanced Water Purification Facility will also include an educational exhibit for visitors in an effort to continue to raise awareness and acceptance of water reuse in El Paso.
