[This is part of my continuing series on how Abilene, Texas obtains its water. The series starts here and continues here]

Reusing waste water isn’t a new thing. Several agencies have treated sewer water to use in various ways. For example, both El Paso and San Antonio inject their treated effluent water into the ground to recharge aquifers. In 2001 Abilene completed a pipeline from the sewer treatment plants north of Abilene to Lake Kirby in southern Abilene. This water is used for recreation at the lake and is also used for irrigation for local parks, golf courses, universities, and Dyess Air Force Base.

This past winter an additional pipeline to Fort Phantom Lake was completed, improved treatment facilities installed, and now treated sewer water flows directly into Fort Phantom Lake. As you may have learned in my earlier post, Fort Phantom is one of the main sources of drinking water for Abilene. It sounds gross to some, but in a dry area that is likely to only become more dry as both the populations and the effects of climate change increase, we need to utilize every drop of water as many times as possible.*

* That being said, there is a reason “Reduce” is listed before “Recycle” in the “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” phrase.

What it looks like

Up to seven million gallons of treated wastewater flows from this pipe each day

Here is the treated water flowing into Fort Phantom Lake, and some of the aquatic life that appears to thrive in it:

Gar at the effluent outflow in Fort Phantom Lake.

As you can see, the water looks quite clean. It would have been interesting to conduct some water quality tests from the water coming from the outflow, but with the recent rains it is underwater.

By the numbers

Amount of sewage treated in Abilene per day: 11.5 million gallons
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) allows Abilene to pump treated effluent water into three bodies of water:

Treated wastewater permitted to flow per day to Phantom:      Up to  7 million gallons

Treated wastewater permitted to flow per day to Kirby:              Up to 4 million gallons

Treated wastewater permitted to flow per day to the Brazos:    Up to 18 million gallons

Another view of the treated water.