The City of Tucson processed approximately 8,700 acre-feet of secondary treated effluent at its reclaimed water facilities located next to the Roger Road Wastewater Treatment Facility. Figure 5-4 Treated effluent at a golf course. Reclaimed water flows through a different set of pipes, separate from the potable water system. The price charged for reclaimed water is substantially lower than the wholesale price Tucson Water charges for potable water. This is done to further encourage the use of effluent.
New users pay the cost of connecting to the system.
This cost can be quite high, due to the expense of extending pipe to carry the effluent to the new user and modifying the user's delivery system to handle effluent. A City of Tucson ordinance requires the use of effluent on new golf courses where possible. Since 1983, all new golf courses served by Tucson Water have been connected to the reclaimed water system. The three other courses use water from their own private wells. There is no current authority to prohibit their use of groundwater.