Yukon council approves new industrial reclaimed‑water class amid data‑center concerns

The Yukon City Council on Jan. 13 approved Ordinance No. 1483, establishing a new “industrial” class of reclaimed water for category‑3 uses, a step city officials said is necessary to allow reuse of treated wastewater and to create a rate framework for future industrial customers.

Supporters argued the change would permit environmentally preferable reuse of water and open a new revenue stream. City staff said engineers are analyzing five years of effluent data and that necessary plant upgrades, storage and rate‑setting would be addressed before any industrial service began. “We’re not going to commit to anything that we don’t have,” a city official said during the meeting.

Opponents warned the ordinance could be used to enable large data centers and urged delay for independent studies and transparent contracts. Heather Boss, who identified herself as from Moore, told the council: “This amendment exists for 1 reason only, to accommodate large scale industrial users, specifically AI data centers.” Jessica Babin, a first‑time attendee, asked whether residents would be left on the hook if infrastructure or contracts fail.

The ordinance language adds a new class of service for industrial reclaimed water, authorizes the council to set rates “prior to initial service,” and requires compliance with state law and ODEQ rules. Residents and council members discussed a nearby PUD application prepared for Box Law Group on behalf of BLE Land Holdings that envisions a data‑center campus; a developer representative has said a campus could need roughly 2.5–3 million gallons per day for cooling.

City staff said the wastewater treatment plant is undergoing generational improvements that will increase rated processing from about 3.0 million gallons per day to 4.5 million per day; those upgrades and any transmission, storage or lift stations required for industrial service would be studied and paid for by the initial user in potential agreements, staff said. The council emphasized that contracts and rate ordinances would return for public review before service begins.

After public comment and council discussion, the ordinance passed on a 4–1 roll call vote (Wooten: Yes; Selby: No; Shriver: Yes; Zimmerman: Yes; Hillmore: Yes).

What happens next: city engineers will complete analyses of available effluent volume, storage needs and distribution requirements; the council said any water‑and‑sewer agreement for industrial reclaimed water would be subject to public review before signing. The city also said it will continue discussions with neighboring jurisdictions and developers about intergovernmental arrangements and any offsite delivery needs.