Bullhead City reviews $60–$70 million plan to repair and expand wastewater system

Utilities Director Mark Clark told the Bullhead City Council on April 1 that Bullhead City faces roughly $60 million to $70 million in capital wastewater projects to repair aging lift stations and upgrade the Section 10 wastewater treatment plant.

The plan addresses multiple immediate failures and longer-term expansion needs, including replacement of failed clarifier equipment, construction of a new headworks with odor control, installation of a large emergency generator, replacement of corroded pipe with PVC, and the staged expansion of plant capacity from 4 million gallons per day to 6 million gallons per day.

Clark said several projects are already under construction and others will require equipment orders this year because of long lead times. "There’s a nine-month lag between when we order and when we receive the equipment," Clark said, adding that the city will not incur payments on much of the work until after July 1 because the purchases are included in next year’s capital budget. "We believe that, we’re gonna have somewhere in the neighborhood of 60 to $70,000,000 worth of capital projects," he said.

Why this matters: Council members and residents have expressed concern about odors, structural failures and the risk of more frequent system outages as equipment nears the end of its service life. Clark said the city is…