Responding to intermittent drought conditions and well-publicized concerns about the reliability of local water supplies, city officials in Peoria, Arizona, are taking action.
A plan is currently underway calling for the construction of five water wells in the city on land mostly owned by the Arizona State Land Department near Arizona State Route 303 and west of Lake Pleasant Parkway.
The project will also see the construction of a new booster pump station.
According to city officials, the wells, once completed, could produce up to 10 million gallons a day in an emergency scenario.
The project has a potential price tag of some $63.5 million and could be paid primarily through loans from the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority of Arizona.
Daniel Kiel, planning and engineering manager for Peoria Water Services, has described the water well project as a backup measure. “If we were to have issues where we cannot get as much of that surface water as we normally do, then we would have to turn to groundwater,” he remarked to the Peoria Times.
Continued Kiel: “And since groundwater is a finite resource, we try not to use it unless we absolutely have to.”
The well project has been a long time coming for Peoria, which is located 13 miles to the northwest of Phoenix and has seen its population double from 108,000 two decades ago to over 200,000 today.
The influx of new people, sparking new building growth, has put pressure on the city’s water reserves, much of which comes from the Central Arizona Project diversion canal. Other water resources for the city: the Salt River Project, and both groundwater, and reclaimed water.
Earlier this year, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs announced that construction in metro Phoenix would be limited in order to protect groundwater supplies.
While emphasizing that the Grand Canyon State was not in any immediate danger of running out of water, Hobbs remarked: “If we do nothing, we could face a 4% shortfall in groundwater supplies over the next 100 years.”
As envisioned, the new Peoria wells will be about 1,000 feet deep.
The City of Peoria is negotiating with the owners of land at the site and has already submitted applications to the State Land Department to purchase the seven acres of land needed for the well projects.
Once those negotiations and approval is secured, construction is expected to begin sometime in 2024, with an expected completion date of early 2026.
By Garry Boulard