Formatted Title
Climate Resiliency through City of Boise Recycled Water Program
Background/Objectives
Water scarcity and adequate supply for growing demands in the western United States is transforming conventional approaches to the treat and discharge mentality to capitalize on water reuse for sustainable groundwater management with managed aquifer recharge. The City of Boise’s Recycled Water Program (RWP) seeks to increase water supply resiliency and augment groundwater by using 5 million gallons per day (mgd) of recycled water from treated industrial effluent for reuse and aquifer recharge in Treasure Valley, Idaho. RWP benefits are increasing water sustainability and enhancing water security by replenishing the groundwater aquifer(s).
Approach/Activities
The RWP requires a cross-discipline approach for program elements which include permitting, research, innovation and pilot testing for both treatment and aquifer recharge, recycled water utility formation and workforce development, siting and land acquisition, policy and partnership development, and community engagement. Two primary technical approaches are being developed to meet the RWP objectives: water treatment planning and design, and groundwater recharge planning and design. Water treatment technologies are being tested in the advanced water treatment pilot to develop a treatment process capable of producing fit-for-purpose water quality from industrial water to produce water that is within permit guidelines, including antidegradation, and compatible with native groundwater, Groundwater recharge planning is tasked with determining the location that is most feasible and by which recharge method, infiltration and/or injection.
Results/Lessons Learned
Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) planning, site characterization, and modeling used to enhance groundwater resources are some of the primary components of the RWP. Site characterization study includes surface and borehole geophysics, infiltration testing, drilling sample collection of drill cuttings for material and geochemical testing, installation of test wells for groundwater sampling and flow and transport modeling. This information from the field work will be used to support recharge location and method decisions, permitting, the design of the pilot recharge facility and the full-scale facility. A successful program will meet the City of Boise’s objective of a more diversified and secure water supply portfolio and limit daily inflows to existing publicly owned treatment works while furthering the City of Boise’s and a state-wide objective to increase water supply through aquifer recharge.