PUBLIC NOTICE
U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS BUILDING STRONG®
LOS ANGELES DISTRICT
THE CITY OF BUCKEYE CENTRAL WATER RECLAMATION FACILITY IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT
NEPA Identification No. EAXX-202-00-L1P-17320034
Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District (USACE) is preparing an Environmental Assessment (EA) for improvements to the City of Buckeye Central Water Reclamation Facility (facility). The purpose of the EA is to evaluate potential environmental impacts of proposed improvement activities to the facility. The purpose of this project is to provide redundancy and resiliency to the existing facility in the event of a 100-year flood event through the replacement of aging equipment. The proposed project would be funded in part by the USACE through the Section 595 Rural Infrastructure Program authorized under the Water Resources Development Act of 1999, Public Law 106-53, as amended (Section 595). As provided for under Section 595, the USACE is authorized to provide design and construction assistance for water-related environmental infrastructure and resource protection and development projects in Arizona, Idaho, Montana, rural Nevada, New Mexico, rural Utah, and Wyoming, including projects for wastewater treatment and related facilities, water supply and related facilities, and surface water resource protection and development.
The proposed project is located in the City of Buckeye, Maricopa County, Arizona. The approximate latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates for the project are latitude 33.213275 and longitude -112.345823. The City of Buckeye (City) is a suburb of the Phoenix metropolitan area and home to approximately 100,000 residents. The facility was constructed in 1995.
The overall resiliency of the facility in the event of a 100-year flood event can be dramatically improved through non-structural improvements to the aging equipment. These improvements are anticipated to occur over no more than 270 consecutive days and include the possible relocation and elevation of critical electrical or mechanical equipment above flood waters at the facility. This would allow for continuity of service during a flood event and floodproofing, similar to waterproofing, to prevent floodwaters from damaging critical electrical or mechanical equipment. The City would also include updating Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems and rehabilitating processing basins to ensure maximum operating efficiency.
Pre-installation activities would require completion of Basin C rehabilitation, effluent pump station rehabilitation and upgrade, assessment and repair of Basins A & B, and replacement of stainless-steel anchor bolts for Clarifier # 5 (Exhibit 1). New installation activities would include (1) installation of new return-activated sludge (RAS) and waste-activated sludge pumps; (2) installation of a new electrical duct bank for the current and future treatment basins; (3) SCADA programming upgrades for operational control of Basin C; (4) effluent pump station pipe infrastructure, pumping, and operating rehabilitation; and (5) installation of a secondary influent bar screen for redundancy of operations and to also update SCADA programming for operational control, electrical, and motor control systems. Administration and monitoring, if necessary, would include Davis-Bacon reporting requirements in which weekly payroll copies are submitted to the federal agency contracting for or financing the construction project. This requirement is meant to demonstrate workers are being paid not less than the proper prevailing wage for the work performed. All project activities would occur within the existing, fenced area for the facility, largely within previously disturbed and regularly maintained dirt access roads and other existing wastewater treatment structures.
If the EA identifies significant impacts that cannot be mitigated to a level that is less than significant, an Environmental Impact Statement would be prepared. If no unmitigable, significant impacts are identified, then a Finding of No Significant Impact would be prepared. Preliminary environmental analysis anticipates that there would be no unmitigable, significant impacts on environmental resources.
Comments on this public notice will be accepted through January 30, 2025. Comments can be submitted electronically to: Kristin.E.Smith@usace.army.mil
EXHIBIT 1: Site Map of Improvements – North 