Scottsdale Now Permitted To Treat Recycled Water For Direct Human Consumption

By Nakiesha Johnson
Published: Monday, November 11, 2019 - 5:05am

In early September, the Advanced Water Treatment Plant at the Scottsdale Water Campus became the state’s first water treatment facility to get a permit to treat recycled water for direct human consumption. 

Until 2018, there was a state statute that you could not use recycled water for potable water uses. For over 20 years, Scottsdale has been using recycled water for indirect potable reuse. 

Nicole Sherbert, the public information officer for Scottsdale Water, talks about the facility's processes recycling water.

"We take the water, it’s treated through our regular standard reclamation plant and then it goes through our advanced water treatment plant. It takes about 12 hours from the time that water leaves your house until that water is turned into ultra-pure bottled water standards," she said. 

Even though the state statute has been removed, and Scottsdale is permitted to use recycled water for direct potable use, Sherbert said, they don’t intend to. 

The city will continue pumping that water into underground aquifers for possible future use. Sherbert said other cities are going to be looking at direct potable use as a very viable future water supply. For them, however, she just wants to change the public’s perception on recycled water.