FORT CARSON, Colo. -- Water that swirls down the drain and flushes down the toilet is being looked at as a means to an end in Fort Carson's march toward Net Zero water by 2020.
Fort Carson, through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District, is working on a reclaimed water system expansion project that is the installation's largest-scale Net Zero water initiative to date.
The post's Cheyenne Shadows Golf Club has used reclaimed water from Fort Carson's onsite sewage treatment plant for irrigation since the 1970s. Through the expansion project, other turf areas on post will transition to reclaimed water irrigation by next summer to include Iron Horse Park and the sports complex.
The project entails upgrading 5 miles of existing pipe and installing close to 2.3 miles of new lines to the system, adding new pumps at the sewage treatment plant, a new booster pump station and doubling the size of the holding pond at the golf course to store up to 30 million gallons of water. Once completed, the system will increase from pumping 500 gallons per minute to up to 3,200 gpm to accommodate the increased irrigation demand.
The desired outcome of the water system expansion effort is to ultimately use 100 percent of Fort Carson's treated wastewater, roughly 200 million gallons, to irrigate large priority turf areas, said Vince Guthrie, Directorate of Public Works Operations and Maintenance Division utility program manager.
"To me, it is about using the right quality water for the right use," said Guthrie.
The cost of using reclaimed water for irrigation in the summer is currently 80 cents per 1,000 gallons, versus $6.07 for drinking water, or an 87-percent savings, said Guthrie. The installation could save more than $1 million annually by using reclaimed water instead of drinking water.
"The reclaimed water is fine for irrigation but does not meet drinking water standards," said Jim Casey, DPW Operations and Maintenance Division utility engineering technician. "It is the same quality you would find in a mountain lake."
Signs will be posted in reclaimed water irrigated locations to notify people using the areas.
DPW is taking steps to ensure the reclaimed water available during the summer will fill the bill to reduce or eventually even eliminate the need for using drinking water for irrigation.
"We will continue to conserve water using smart irrigation, drip irrigation and efficient sprinkler heads to avoid having to supplement with potable water," said Guthrie.
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