A Plan for our Community, by our Community
July 27, 2020
The City of Boise’s Water Renewal Services processes, treats and cleans more than 10 billion gallons of used water per year. Commonly known as wastewater, the water that flushes down the drains of Boise homes and businesses travels through over 900 miles of underground pipes and enters one of our two water renewal facilities. From there the water is renewed to a high quality before it is sent to the Boise River to flow away downstream.
In 2015, the city began to ask if there is a better way to use our water. We started to plan not only for aging infrastructure, a quickly growing city, and increased regulatory requirements, but also to make sure we are providing the best service to our community and making the most of our water resources.
The result of this planning is the Water Renewal Utility Plan. Staff combined thousands of pieces of public input, technical evaluations of the possible options for renewed water, and comprehensive analyses of the regulatory, affordability and environmental implications.
The Water Renewal Utility Plan is built by Boise, for Boise. The recommended plan will:
- Pair traditional wastewater management with innovative, sustainable solutions
- Keep a certain amount of clean, renewed water in our community as a method to build resiliency and prepare for water scarcity
- Allow the city to set the course for scalability of recycled water
- Proactively and prudently manage our existing infrastructure
- Protect the Boise River and our local environment
- Reflect the feedback from our community
- Balance affordability with innovation