[ADEQ Media] ADEQ Director Owens Dedicates New Groundwater Treatment Facility at Superfund Site in Tucson

[media@lists.azdeq.gov]

ADEQ Director Owens Dedicates New Groundwater Treatment Facility at
Superfund Site in Tucson

TUCSON (April 6, 2007) - Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
(ADEQ) Director Steve Owens and officials from the Flowing Wells
Irrigation District today hosted a dedication ceremony and tour of an
innovative new groundwater treatment facility on the west side of
Tucson.

The facility, known as a dual treatment facility, will remove arsenic
and volatile organic compounds from groundwater that is pumped from two
Flowing Wells Irrigation District wells. It is the first dual treatment
facility funded jointly by ADEQ and the Water Infrastructure Finance
Authority of Arizona (WIFA).

"This new facility ensures that the treated water meets the new,
stricter standards for arsenic in drinking water, and also ensures that
the drinking water is free of contamination from volatile organic
chemicals," Owens told officials, staff and residents who came to tour
the facility at 1602 West Roger Road in Tucson. "Protecting precious
drinking water supplies is a top priority for ADEQ." 

ADEQ paid $450,000 through the Water Quality Assurance Revolving Fund
(WQARF), the state Superfund program, to design and install a system to
remove volatile organic compounds such as trichloroethene (TCE). "This
new treatment system means the water from Flowing Wells will be safe to
drink while ADEQ completes the groundwater cleanup in the area," Owens
said. "It's a great example of a successful partnership between ADEQ,
WIFA and the Flowing Wells Irrigation District."

The new 900 gallon-per-minute groundwater treatment facility, located at
the existing Roger Road pumping and storage site, was installed by
Flowing Wells Irrigation District (FWID) to meet stronger federal
standards for arsenic. FWID funded the construction operation and
maintenance portion of the system, which removes arsenic from the
groundwater, with a $966,600 low-interest loan from WIFA.

The arsenic treatment portion of the project was recently honored with
EPA's 2006 Aquarius Award for the innovative use of their State
Revolving Fund program for sustainable public health protection. The
collaborative project has been nominated by the Arizona Water
Infrastructure Finance Authority for furthering the goals of the
Drinking Water Act through exceptional planning, management and
financing.

The Flowing Wells Irrigation District serves about 15,000 customers. 

The project is part of ADEQ's cleanup at the Miracle Mile Water Quality
Assurance Revolving Fund (WQARF) Site. The state Superfund program,
known as WQARF, identifies and cleans up areas with contaminated soil
and groundwater across the state.

-end-

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topic concerning the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality should
contact the Office of Communications at (602) 771-2215 or via email at
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