Recycling Treated Municipal Wastewater for Industrial Water Use

Section 1: Introduction
1.1 Project Vision
Section 1: Introduction
Recycling Treated Municipal Wastewater for Industrial Water Use
Conserving Minnesota’s ground water and surface water resources is important to all the state’s
inhabitants and to the state’s long-term development. The economic vitality of Minnesota requires the
business sector to grow with the population of the state. While water supply availability is not currently
considered a limitation for industrial development in many Minnesota communities, there are numerous
areas in the state that have a limited supply of high quality water. Even within the Minneapolis/St. Paul
metropolitan area (Twin Cities metro area), development is now extending to regions with less productive
aquifers and future growth will increase competition for a limited water supply. Industries requiring
abundant or high quality water may find it difficult to locate in some areas unless other water supply
options are made known and available to them.
One potential supply in water-short areas is effluent from municipal wastewater treatment plants
(WWTPs), also known as recycled wastewater or reclaimed water. Municipalities may benefit by offering
recycled wastewater as an alternative water source to industries and by forging partnerships with
industries to promote conservation of a limited potable water supply and improved protection of the
state’s water resources.
With interest in wastewater recycling growing in the state and water protection a consistent concern for
Minnesotans, the Legislative Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCMR) provided Metropolitan
Council (Met Council) a grant for the project documented in this report, titled, Recycling Treated
Municipal Wastewater for Industrial Water Use. Funding for this project, conducted from July 2005
through June 2007, was recommended by the LCMR from the Minnesota Environment and Natural
Resources Trust Fund. The Met Council provided
additional funding for the project through in-kind
contributions of staff time. In addition, other state
agencies such as the Minnesota Pollution Control
Agency (MPCA), Minnesota Department of
Natural Resources (MDNR) and the Minnesota
Department of Health (MDH) participated via
Guiding Goal: Conserve Minnesota’s water resources
Benefits:
Reduce ground water depletion by providing an
alternative supply for nonpotable water uses
Provide a reliable and potentially lower cost water
source for industries
stakeholder meetings and technical review and input. It is estimated that 20% of project funding was from
these in-kind contributions of staff time and 80% from the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources
Trust Fund.
The guiding goal for this project is to promote the conservation of Minnesota’s ground water and surface
water resources by recycling treated municipal wastewater for industrial use. The project is applicable to
communities throughout Minnesota. Benefits include: (1) Less ground water aquifer depletion due to onetime
use and discharge to surface waters; (2) Lower demand on finite water resources to support business
and growth; and (3) Reliable and potentially lower cost water sources for industries.
Two basic objectives were established for the project: (1) Determine the feasibility of using treated
municipal wastewater as an industrial water supply and (2) Identify implementation issues associated with
recycling municipal wastewater in Minnesota for industrial use.
Metropolitan Council Environmental Services 3