Conservation Through Water Reuse: Experiences From The Santa Ana Pueblo

The Tamayamé, the Native American Tribal members of the Santa Ana Pueblo, north of Albuquerque, NM, are committed to natural resource conservation and future economic development. In the late 1990s, they built a water reclamation facility and began reusing treated effluent to irrigate the Pueblo's golf course. Although they were pleased with the safety and environmental benefits of using on-site hypochlorite, they continued to struggle with biofilm in the distribution line, as well as other operational issues.

In 2007, the Pueblo upgraded to a MIOX® mixed oxidant generator. They maintained the same safety benefits of on-site generation, while eliminating biofilm, reducing maintenance, and cutting costs.

The Pueblo had traditionally used an anaerobic, complete retention lagoon system to handle influent. The Santa Ana Tribal Utilities Authority regularly received complaints about the odor emitted by the lagoon system. The lagoons also occupied a large piece of valuable land that could have other uses on the Pueblo. These issues led the Pueblo to consider a wastewater treatment facility. In keeping with their focus on natural resource conservation and future economic development, the Pueblo also wanted to reuse the treated effluent. As well as conserving resources, water reuse would save the Pueblo money. Considering the clear environmental benefits and peripheral advantages, the Tribal Council approved the plans to build the wastewater treatment facility in the late 1990s which would allow them to reuse the treated effluent. According to Glenn Tenorio, Chairman of the Santa Ana Tribal Utilities Authority, "Water is a precious commodity. Why give away a resource in which we've invested time, effort, and money? Why send it downstream for someone else to use, when we can reuse it and reduce our demand for potable water?" Accordingly, the water coming from the community itself, along with the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa, the Santa Ana Star Casino, and other small businesses, is now purified and recycled for irrigation of the Twin Warriors Golf Club.