Aurora Water is the state leader in reuse. Since 1968, Aurora has used reclaimed water to irrigate parks, golf courses and landscaping at city buildings.
All the water that comes from the Colorado and Arkansas basins through the Homestake Project, which is approximately 50% of our annual yield, is reusable to extinction. When we change our water rights in the South Platte River Basin, a portion of that water is also decreed as reusable. Essentially, this means that the water residents use for washing, laundry, showering, as well as some of the water from lawn watering, stays in the South Platte River Basin.
The Prairie Waters System uses riverbank filtration and aquifer recharge and recovery. As the final part of the Prairie Waters System, the Peter D. Binney Water Purification Facility uses some of the most advanced purification in the country, including chemical softening, UV lights and oxidation, and complex levels of filtration to treat our reused water. The water is then blended with our mountain water supply, which makes the water indistinguishable from the high-quality drinking water our residents expect.
As some other water utilities struggle to find ways to remove new contaminants from their supply, Aurora Water is ahead of the curve with some of the most advanced purification technology in the country.
Expansion of our Prairie Waters System is essential to our future water supplies. With these facilities and systems in place, in addition to their future expansion, Aurora Water is ready to handle issues that may arise.
For more information go to AuroraGov.org/PrairieWaters.