GLENWOOD — Oregon has been given an unprecedented opportunity to secure to propel climate action and invest in communities across the state.
In May, the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission (MWMC) was awarded $4 million in federal drought resiliency funds for recycled water development. The money came after the Bureau of Reclamation passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, granting the state access to these federal dollars.
Todd Miller, MWMC environmental services supervisor, presented at the Springfield City Club meeting on Aug. 15 about this topic.
“It’s free money, not easy money,” Miller said of the grant. “This was years and years of applying for grants, getting rejected, fine-tuning them, sitting down, having passionate calls with FEMA, and still getting turned down.”
At the meeting, Miller mapped out MWMC’s mission to protect the community’s health and the environment by wastewater services to Eugene, Springfield, and Lane County as a whole.
By 2026, the Commission plans to produce Class A water — the highest class of recycled water recognized in Oregon — approved for virtually every use other than consumption.
The grant will upgrade existing infrastructure at the Eugene Springfield regional wastewater treatment plant for water filtering, disinfection, storage, and conveyance to deliver up to 1.3 million gallons of Class A recycled water per day.
Construction upgrades include: new open-channel UV disinfection, new recycled water transmission pipes, a new on-site truck fill station, and tertiary filter improvements.
Miller said, “24/7 365, somebody’s there, mining that plant, making sure the water is clean and monitoring it to make sure that we’re meeting and seeding all of the clean water regulations.”
As long as it is properly treated, recycled water can satisfy most water demands and increase accessibility to potable (drinking) water. The greater the odds of human exposure, the more water needs to be treated.
The Commission historically produces Class D water, using more than 46 million gallons to irrigate its poplar tree farm as part of a natural treatment system for wastewater.
The MWMC plans to return all of Eugene/Springfield’s wastewater to the Willamette River – or divert it for additional recycled water processing.
“Some of the water you just drank passed through the kidneys of Socrates, Genghis Khan, and Joan of Arc,” said Miller. “Matter is either created or destroyed; it’s the same water molecules we’ve had since the birth of the Earth basically, and it’s still getting recycled.”
This year is all about finalizing funding agreements and design. Project bidding and construction will start in 2025, and full projection completion with open house demonstrations is anticipated by 2027.
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THE MORE YOU KNOW
WHAT IT IS
Wastewater is water that has been used in a way that negatively affects its quality. It can come from many sources, such as homes, businesses, industries, and schools.
The treatment plant undergoes a process that removes and eliminates contaminants from wastewater before it is released into another body of water or used for irrigation.
WHO THEY ARE
Local representatives from Lane County, City of Eugene, City of Springfield serve on the Commission. Each partner has both an elected official and a citizen representative, except for the City of Eugene which has two citizen representatives to reflect a proportional number of customers.
WHAT THEY DO
The Commission provides oversight to the facilities and guidance to staff, establishes policies, sets goals and regional wastewater rates, oversees the facilities budget, approves capital projects, and grants contracts to consultants and construction companies. MWMC has been recovering and reusing water resources since 1983.
WHY THEY DO IT
Recycling water is important for reducing pollution, environmental restoration, improving water supply availability and accessibility, and preventing water shortages.
