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North Las Vegas water reclamation official outlines capacity limits, equalization basin issues and buildout projections
Summary
Operations supervisor Bryce Burrell told the board the city's Water Reclamation Facility currently averages just over 20 MGD influent with upgraded membranes giving a 35 MGD flux capacity; under high‑flow buildout scenarios the city projects up to about 77 MGD by mid‑century and is phasing upgrades accordingly.
Bryce Burrell, operations supervisor at the City of North Las Vegas Water Reclamation Facility, presented the utility advisory board with an annual update on collection system operations, recent plant projects and future capacity planning.
Burrell said the facility's original permit recognized a total influent flow of 25 million gallons per day (MGD) at startup; recent membrane replacements and additions will increase flux capacity toward 35 MGD. He also noted current average influent flows are "a little over 20,000,000 gallons per day" while peak diurnal flows can reach as high as 35 MGD and the plant handles large annual returns to Lake Mead.
Describing planning for Garnet Valley service, Burrell said the collection system will require three lift stations to move flows back to the valley; those lift stations are anticipated to be completed in 2028. He added long‑range headworks and bioreactor upgrades are the near‑term phasing priorities as the city prepares for a projected buildout scenario that could require roughly 77 MGD by 2050 under high‑flow assumptions.
Burrell also reviewed operational challenges tied to the new 2.2 million‑gallon flow equalization basin: extended residence times have reduced dissolved oxygen and produced hydrogen sulfide (H2S), requiring careful aeration strategies because excessive aeration can deplete carbon and upset downstream biological phosphorus removal. "The remedy for that is to aerate that basin," he said, while also explaining the tradeoffs.
On the effluent outfall, Burrell said leaks were found in a reinforced concrete box (RCB) constructed about 2015; the city inserted HOBAS FRP pipe in above‑ground sections and plans cured‑in‑place lining for buried inverts at roadway underpasses to stop seepage and protect the structure under stormhead conditions.
The board asked clarifying questions about whether doubling facilities would be required; presenters said the city will phase expansions and maintain redundancy to allow subunits to be taken offline for maintenance without interrupting service.
