February 20, 2023 |
This winter’s heavy snow likely will not save Rawlins from water restrictions this summer. Curtailed water use looks like the new normal for the city until officials can resolve the infrastructure problems allowed to develop through decades of neglect.
The public works department is working to increase overall water supply by bringing the pre-treatment plant back to life. Progress has been slow. Even if the long-dormant facility is put back to work treating water from the North Platte River to add to the supply from the springs south of town, officials say water restrictions will be in effect again this year.
Built in 2000, the water pre-treatment plant was designed to ensure the city had enough drinking water, if drought caused shortages in the Sage Creek Basin, the city’s main source of supply. The plant can treat water from the North Platte River and make it safe for residents to drink.
The plant has sat idle for 20 years. Last summer, the infrastructure breakdowns that caused a city-wide water shortage made officials think about bringing the pre-treatment back online.
Water treatment plant operator Stevie Osborn said the pre-treatment plant will be used in conjunction with the city’s existing water treatment plant to clean the river water.
Pictured above: Rawlins water pretreatment plant. Photo courtesy of Bud Dimick.
Turbidity measures the presence of dissolved particulates in a water sample.
The city will begin testing the pre-treatment plant within the next month or so. The goal is to dial-in the recipe of chemicals needed to create potable water. Rawlins Public Information Officer Mira Miller said no timeline exists for when the plant will be fully operational.
Before testing of the pre-treatment plant begins, the city will drain its large tanks, making space for the test water. During that time, residents may notice a change in the flavor and smell of their water. Osborn said it is nothing to worry about.
Even with the pre-treatment plant operational, the city would still face water restrictions during the dry months. Miller said restrictions shouldn’t be nearly as harsh as they were last summer.
The pre-treatment plant won’t solve all the city’s water problems. Work needs to be done on the Sage Creek spring boxes, where most of the clean water comes from. Osborn said, in her opinion, water restrictions are here to stay.
Operating the pre-treatment plant is expensive. A constant supply of chemicals and a trained staff will be required. Osborn said the city’s best option is to improve the infrastructure it already has.
Water from the Sage Creek spring flows through a 32-mile pipe before reaching the city’s main treatment plant. Miller said the city has gotten two Community Development Block Grants to repair the pipeline and the treatment plant’s computer-controlled systems.
The city has been working with Y2 Consultants, an engineering firm out of Jackson, to bring the pre-treatment plant back online. Testing was supposed to begin in January, but unnamed delays have postponed them until later this month or early next. Even with the later start, city officials are confident the plant will be 100 percent operational by May.
