Communities dispute Global Water effluent charges

Maricopa residents have raised concerns about being charged to clean up the 404 wash that Global Water flushes with effluent water.

The issues arising from the effluent water discharge into the 404 wash involve the amount each community is being charged.

“The cost for their water is charged three times,” Maricopa resident Terry Clark said. “The first charge comes when you flush the toilet. Then they charge to water the greenbelts with effluent water. Finally they cause the surrounding communities to be charged by landscaping companies to clean up Global Water’s action.”

Residents of Senita, Rancho El Dorado, the Villages at Rancho El Dorado and Province have raised concerns about being charged to use the water in their homes, paying a fee for Global Water to fill their lakes and ponds with the effluent water, and then being forced to pay for landscaping inside the 404 wash to keep it clear of debris after excess water is discharged through the area. The Maricopa Flood Control district mandates the bottom of the 404 wash remain clear of obstructions, so the communities bordering the wash are obligated to keep it in working order.

According to Clark, Global Water discharges 2 million gallons of water into the wash each day. By doing so, Clark claims, this creates a wet land in the area. This in turn causes overgrowth of plants and weeds, and allows mosquitoes to develop breeding grounds.

However, Global Water General Manager Jon Corwin said the amount of water discharged was much lower. He said Global Water only discharges water that isn’t used, and the amount fluctuates throughout the year. His approximation was no more than 25 percent of the water is flushed through the wash.

“In the winter months, the water gets discharged into the wash,” Corwin said. “The majority of the year, we send the water to the communities for their lakes and ponds. In the summer, there is rarely any discharge because all the water is in use for the lakes.”

This still causes an issue for Clark and other community members though. The communities surrounding the wash already pay for water services and for the effluent water to fill their lakes. The added cost of landscaping to keep the wash clear from debris or overgrowth caused by any amount of discharge, they claim, is unfair.

The communities also can’t opt out of keeping the wash clear. The 404 wash is a safeguard for flooding, and any obstruction could cause the wash to fail. Keeping the area clear of debris and overgrowth is necessary, but it also isn’t as simple as it sounds.

According to Clark, the Army Corps of Engineers prohibits machined equipment from going into the wash. The items naturally growing in the wash also can’t be uprooted, or the integrity of the wash could be compromised. These stipulations cause landscaping rates to escalate. Clark estimated Senita alone had to pay $17,200 in 2014, and will likely pay upwards of $20,000 in 2015 to keep the wash clear.

“We don’t want them to pay for all of the landscaping,” Clark said. “We want Global Water to take responsibility and share the cleanup costs caused by their actions.”

Clark has been challenging the charges for the last three years. He and other members of the surrounding communities have gone to the Arizona Corporations Commission, but Clark said they have been unable to help so far. However, ACC spokesperson Rebecca Wilder hasn’t seen a case regarding the issue come through the system since 2014.

“We’ve had rate cases involving Global Water in the past,” Wilder said. “The last rate case was decided Feb. 26, 2014.”

Wilder also checked with the other members of her staff, and no pending cases or complaints were found.

Clark and other members of the frustrated communities have also looked to the city for help. However, as City Manager Gregory Rose explained, the city definitely has an interest in the issue, but they also have agencies set up to monitor situations such as this. If the issue became a health or safety concern, the city would then step in and try to resolve the problems by working with the appointed agencies. There is no need to do so because none of these concerns exist at this time, he said.

In an attempt to resolve the issue, Global Water is looking into alternative points of discharge for the effluent water. Their hope is to diminish the impact the discharged effluent water has on the surrounding communities.