Washington D.C. - The United States House of Representative’s Committee on Natural Resources approved Rep. Jason Chaffetz’ Magna Water District Water Reuse and Groundwater Recharge Act of 2009 (HR 2265). This committee unanimously approved the bill and reported it favorably to the full House of Representatives for consideration.
Magna Water District (District) constructed an electrodialysis reversal (EDR) drinking water treatment plant to remove harmful arsenic and perchlorate from the Barton Well Field. To address the water shortage issues facing the citizens of northwest Salt Lake County, the District developed a state-of-the-art, first of its type in the world water reuse and recharge facility, known as BIOBROx, which treats the waste stream from the EDR plant to produce high quality effluent that can be used for outdoor irrigation. In doing so, the Magna Water District will be saving over 580 million gallons/year of drinkable water that was formerly being used for irrigation purposes.
Rep. Chaffetz introduced the Magna Water District Water Reuse and Groundwater Recharge Act to address a pollution issue that was created by rocket motor production and that now necessitates a federal clean up.
In the same Natural Resources hearing, Rep. Jim Matheson’s Bonneville Unit Clean Hydropower Facilitation Act (HR 2008) was also unanimously approved and reported favorably to the full House of Representatives. This bill will facilitate the development of 50 megawatts of hydroelectric power in the Diamond Fork System of the federal Bonneville Unit in Utah. Rep. Jason Chaffetz was an original co-sponsor of this bill.
The Magna Water District Water Reuse and Groundwater Recharge Act is the House of Representatives companion bill to Senate bill S. 745, sponsored by Senator Orrin Hatch.
