Duluth to irrigate park with reuse water

Lawrenceville, Ga., (Oct. 17, 2006) – The Gwinnett Board of Commissioners and the City of Duluth have signed an agreement for the county to provide irrigation water for the city’s 45-acre Bunten Road Park on the northeast side of Duluth.

   The county will provide highly treated, non-potable re-use water from the state-of-the-art F. Wayne Hill Water Reclamation Plant. It will be used to water landscaped areas and athletic fields at the popular park.

   Reuse water has been used for similar purposes at the county’s Pinckneyville Park since 2004 and at two golf courses in Suwanee. Other metro area counties, including Cobb, Fulton and Paulding, also use reuse water for irrigation. Such uses are strongly recommended in the 50-Year Master Plan for Gwinnett’s water supply. “This helps reduce the demand for fully-treated drinking water,” according to Frank Stephens, Gwinnett’s Water Resources Director. He explained that “impurities, harmful organisms and bacteria have been removed at the treatment plant.”

   Georgia’s statewide water plan emphasizes conservation and reuse. In 2006, Gwinnett County has already reduced its demand on Lake Lanier supplies by 135 million gallons through its reuse program.

   An existing eight-inch iron pipeline along Old Peachtree Road and Bunten Road will deliver the reuse water to the park. For the first five years, the city will pay 75 cents per thousand gallons used. During the second five years, the charge will adjust annually under terms of the contract. After 10 years, the city will pay the standard, non-potable reuse water rate in effect at that time.