Central Arizona College has recently been awarded two water conservation grants from the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority of Arizona. The first grant of $183,286 is for the purchase and installation of HydroFLOW devices, and the second grant totaling $141,124 will assist the college in placing artificial turf on the softball field.

CAC will purchase five HydroFLOW devices to be installed on the cooling towers that are a part of the centralized air conditioning systems at each of the college’s campuses. These water treatment mechanisms are designed to reduce water usage by decreasing limescale and biofilm buildup inside the chillers, health exchanges, pipes, and cooling towers. Through a sine wave signal, the equipment helps to stop scale forming in the circulating water column of the cooling towers meaning the system no longer must be flushed out frequently to remove scale. It is anticipated that this infrastructure efficiency upgrade will save approximately 10 million gallons of water annually. Additional chemical and energy savings will be realized with coolers running more efficiently. CAC’s match for the project is $47.041.50.

The second water conservation grant will enable CAC Facilities to replace the natural turf at the Signal Peak Campus softball field with artificial turf. One significant advantage of artificial turf is its minimal water requirements compared to natural grass, making it an effective water conservation solution, especially in drought-prone areas. The softball field is 27,000 square feet and is used by CAC’s women’s softball team for practices and games. By installing turf, it is estimated annual savings will be 4.59 acre-feet or 1.5 million gallons of water on an annual basis. CAC will contribute a match of $45.821.68 to complete the project.

Each of these grants allows CAC to reduce water consumption and proceed with water conservation activities as outlined in the college’s sustainability plan.

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