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Water master says Mona has ~389 acre-feet at sewer plant but pumping and treatment costs stall reuse plans
Summary
Jonathan Jones told the council the city could reuse about 389 acre-feet from the sewer plant for irrigation or other nonpotable uses, but barriers include pumping costs, distribution (purple pipe) and additional treatment estimated in past studies at roughly $1,000,000.
Jonathan Jones, Mona’s water master, told the council the city has significant potential reuse at the sewer plant — roughly "389, basically, acre feet" — but that cost is the principal obstacle to putting it to use.
"We've got the legal right to do it. It's just a matter of money," Jones said, outlining that the plant sits at the bottom of the system and pumping treated effluent up into distribution requires substantial investment. He noted state rules require nonpotable distribution (purple pipe) and that additional treatment would be required to use the reclaimed water for irrigation; past studies cited treatment costs on the order of $1,000,000 for that extra step.
Council members and staff discussed options to monetize or export the water, including an exchange with downstream users, selling or contracting water to industrial buyers, or evaluating grants and funding sources for a secondary distribution system. Jones said staff will continue pursuing funding options, reuse exchanges and conversations with neighboring landowners and stakeholders to identify feasible short- and long-term solutions.
