Apache Junction Sewer District has applied for a renewal of an Arizona pollutant discharge elimination system permit for the proposed discharge of up to 6.5 million gallons per day of treated domestic wastewater from its water reclamation facility to an unnamed wash, tributary to Siphon Draw in the Middle Gila River Basin in Pinal County.

It is an expansion of flow from 2.14 million gallons per day, according to a release from the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality.

The publicly owned treatment works, 5661 S. Ironwood Drive in Apache Junction, receives domestic wastewater from residential and commercial sources in Apache Junction.

Currently all treated effluent from Apache Junction Sewer District is sent to 11 on-site rapid infiltration recharge basins. The proposed permit will authorize discharge of treated effluent to an unnamed wash, tributary to Siphon Draw, only when the facility cannot send effluent to the recharge pipeline or when the recharge basins are off-line, according to a fact sheet with the release.

“Discharge only occurs when effluent flow is higher than the recharge basins can accept, or when the recharge basins are offline. The discharge is intermittent, starting and stopping at irregular intervals over a 24-hour period,” it states.

The permit and fact sheet may be viewed at https://azdeq.gov/PublicNotices by typing the permit number AZ0023931 in the “Keywords” search box.

A public notice and related documentation are also available for public review 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday at the ADEQ Records Center, 1110 W. Washington St. in Phoenix. Call 602-771-4380 or e-mail recordscenter@azdeq.gov 24 hours in advance to schedule an appointment to review the file.

Persons may submit comments or request a public hearing on the proposed action in writing to Lesley Davidson, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Water Quality Division, 1110 W. Washington St., Phoenix, Arizona 85007, or electronically to Davidson.lesley@azdeq.gov.

All written comments received by ADEQ by the close of business on the date 30 days after the June 6 publication of the notice will be considered in the final permit decision. A public hearing request must be in writing and must include the reasons for such request. If there is a significant degree of public interest, the director will hold a hearing, the release states.