Gold in the pipes

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The City of Aurora, Colo., voted in favor of leasing 1,200 acre feet per year of treated effluent to Anadarko Petroleum for use in the company’s frac’ing operations.

  • The deal would raise approximately $9.5 million over five years for the city.
  • This is a stark contrast to the recent rejection of a PERC Water proposal to the City of Pinole, Calif. PERC offered to design, build, operate and possibly finance a recycling facility that would supply water to the Phillips 66 refinery in Rodeo.
  • Meanwhile, the City of Visalia, Calif., is considering trading recycled effluent to the Tulare Irrigation District in exchange for Sierra run-off surface water from a canal. The surface water would replenish groundwater that feeds Visalia’s wells.
  • The California legislature has removed an $11 billion water bond issuance from the November ballot. Crafted under former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, the measure has been pushed back to 2014. California faces a $15.7 billion budget deficit.
  • Chattanooga, Tenn., is the latest city to feel the EPA’s regulatory squeeze. In addition to paying a $476,000 fine, the city has agreed to make $250 million worth of investments in its sanitary sewer system to mitigate CSO problems.
  • Canada’s environment minister announced new rules that would require all wastewater treatment plants to employ secondary treatment. The rules would affect approximately 25 percent of the country’s WWTPs. The Canadian government said infrastructure funding is available for necessary upgrades.
  • State regulators in Alaska have denied expedited approval of British Columbia Investment Management Company’s purchase of CAI Capital Management Company’s 42-percent interest in Corix Infrastructure, of which Fairbanks Sewer & Water is a subsidiary.
  • bcIMC indicated to the Regulatory Commission of Alaska that the latter’s failure to approve the purchase by July 31 would delay regulatory approval of Corix’s acquisition of Utilities, Inc., a claim that left the regulators scratching their heads.