Submitted by City of Lacey
Construction will soon be underway on a state-of-the-art facility that will use reclaimed water to recharge shallow aquifers feeding Lacey’s Woodland Creek. The $2.1 million project, located in the city’s Woodland Creek Community Park, will help stabilize stream flows along stretches of the creek that routinely go dry during warmer months. The work should be completed by mid-October.
Woodland Creek, which connects Lacey’s four lakes to Henderson Inlet and Puget Sound, provides critical habitat for Chinook salmon, a federally-listed threatened species. Nearly ninety percent of the stream’s corridor within Lacey and its future growth area has been permanently protected by the city, including a recently-acquired 500-acre tract featuring two miles of frontage along the creek and several of its tributaries.
The 6-acre project includes construction of three underground reclaimed water infiltration galleries in the southwest corner of the 72-acre park. Park users are advised not to enter the fenced construction zone. When complete, the project area will be replanted with meadow grasses and be available for recreational uses.
Lacey’s reclaimed water is produced by the LOTT Clean Water Alliance. The Class A treated wastewater is suitable for a number of non-potable uses, including groundwater recharge and irrigation. Eventually, seventy percent of Lacey’s municipal wastewater will be recycled as reclaimed water.
For more information about the construction project, please contact Dale Mix, Lacey Public Works Construction Manager, at (360) 438-5600 or DMix@ci.lacey.wa.us. For more information about Lacey’s parks and open space system, contact Lori Flemm, Parks and Recreation Director, at LFlemm@ci.lacey.wa.us or (360) 438-2633.
