Wichita Falls Reuse Project Receives Texas ASCE Achievement Award

Congratulations to the City of Wichita Falls and their staff for having their Direct Potable Reuse/Indirect Potable Reuse project chosen by the American Society of Civil Engineers Texas Section for the Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement award.

Freese and Nichols was among several partners helping the City develop, secure permitting for and implement their ground-breaking reuse program, which has provided an innovative means of sustaining the drinking water supply even through extreme drought. The City has become an example of how water recycling can work.

To supplement their water supply, Wichita Falls first used a temporary DPR program in 2014-16, getting state approval to purify effluent and blend it with surface water to provide an emergency resource. They were only the second entity in North America to use DPR.

The City then switched to an IPR system that went online in 2018. This long-term solution can bring 16 million gallons of treated water daily to Lake Arrowhead, the city’s main water source.

The project also has been recognized for excellence by the Texas Municipal League, the Water Environment Association of Texas, the Texas Public Works Association and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

David Sloan, Water/Wastewater Treatment – North Texas, was Project Manager for our work on the project.