Use of reclaimed water is taking what we once considered to be
wastewater, giving it a high degree of treatment, and using the
resulting high-quality reclaimed water for a new, beneficial use.
Cleaning or removing impurities from wastewater is like washing dishes
after a meal. We don't throw away the dishes every time we use them.
Extensive treatment and disinfection by the wastewater treatment plant
ensure that public health and environmental quality are protected. A
multi-stage treatment process eliminates pathogens (solids, organics,
and viruses), but the reclaimed water still retains nitrogen,
phosphorus, and other nutrients that work as fertilizers to enhance
ornamental plant and turf grass growth. This process produces water
ideal for lawn sprinkling and other irrigation purposes, but not
suitable for human or animal consumption.
Saving Fresh Water
Water studies reveal that in many communities, up to 50 percent of
the scarce drinking water that flows through water meters each month is
used to maintain landscape and turf grass. This trend can be reversed in
Manatee County since much of the demand for irrigation can be met with
reclaimed water, thus helping to save precious potable water supplies.
In addition to residential irrigation use, many golf courses and farms
throughout the country use reclaimed water, saving even more potable
water.
M.A.R.S. - Manatee Agricultural Reuse System
The MARS system, which was activated in 2006, is a strategy to reduce
aquifer withdrawals and increase the drinking water supply by providing
alternative water sources for irrigation. The overuse of groundwater in
one of the most stressed aquifer recharge areas in the state of
Florida, the Southern Water Use Caution Area (SWUCA), has made finding
alternative sources of water critical.
Manatee County operates three water reclamation facilities (WRF). All
three of the WRFs depend upon irrigation with reclaimed water to use
the treated water. Before MARS, each facility operated independently. If
one facility had surplus reclaimed water and another facility had
excessive demand, the County had no mechanism to move the surplus to the
area of need.
To implement MARS, the County has constructed a pipeline connecting
the three WRFs, giving the County the ability to redirect surplus
reclaimed water along the pipeline to areas where water is needed. The
County has received grant funding of over $25 million from the EPA and SWFWMD for
construction of the MARS pumping and transmission facilities. The total
construction costs amount to approximately $50 million.
Supporting the water needs of our community while maintaining the
health and quantities of our fresh water supply is a balance that can be
achieved by valuing our reclaimed water as a sustaining alternative
water resource that can serve water demands for activities that would
otherwise compete for the same resources.