The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) requires EPCOR to decommission and replace the Section 11 lagoons by the end of 2025, with the Copper Basin facility providing service by the end of 2023.
Construction on Copper Basin started in mid-2022, soon after EPCOR became the San Tan district’s wastewater service provider and has stayed on schedule ever since.
While Copper Basin is right on schedule, it is possible that electrical equipment could take longer to get here as a result of global supply chain issues. Just in case, we requested a three-month extension to get Copper Basin up and running. ADEQ has approved that 90-day extension to March 31, 2024. We’re still focused on December 31, 2023, as long as electrical equipment that powers Copper Basin arrives on time.
This doesn’t change the timing to close down Section 11 – it will be decommissioned after Copper Basin begins operating and we expect that to happen by the December 2025 timeframe as planned.
We recognize that customers and others may have ongoing questions about the project, and we're committed to transparency and responsiveness. We'll be posting updated project information and timelines on this page and staying in touch with customers in other ways, like EPCOR Essentials news in your monthly bill, throughout the process.