Self-sustaining water system<br>goes online at GCNP Airport
TUSAYAN — After sitting unused for nearly two years, a new water system at Grand Canyon National Park Airport went online in mid-August. With its inception, the airport is now self-sustaining when it comes to water.
With water being a constant topic in northern Arizona — from the supply in Williams to the possible effects of development in Tusayan on Grand Canyon's seeps and springs — acting airport manager Russ Pankey can only smile when talking about the new system.
Alex O’Campo, left, and Bill Ballard, both operations supervisors, monitor the water system at the airport on a daily basis.
"That's the beauty of it, that's what makes it such a good system," Pankey said. "And the water quality is excellent. It tastes good."
The system features a unique water cache system situated in between the airport's runways. For example, plant operator Chris Williamson said when it rained on Tuesday of last week, the system collected 200,000 gallons of water.
The $3.6-million upgrade saw construction completed in late 1998. The airport connected with the Tusayan water system while the airport went through the various steps to get it up and running. An operations contract was awarded to U.S. Filter Corp., in July and the plant went online Aug. 15.
Williamson oversees the water system with the help of assistant Pat Carpenter through a $93,000 per year contact. Those funds cover operation, maintenance and supplies for the system.
"Now that we have this contracted, we run four systems in the neighborhood," Williamson said. "We also run two in Valle and the Red Feather (in Tusayan)."
Part of the upgrade included the installation of two 1.5-million gallon storage tanks for a total capacity of 3 million gallons. The water cache collects water and it's then pumped up a hill to those storage tanks, which measure 24 feet high with a diameter of 100 feet.
From the storage tanks, Pankey said the water goes through the filtration system and is distributed to airport tenants.
"We have to rely on the rain coming," Pankey said. "It's totally dependent on rainfall. If it holds true what has happened in the past, then we'll have more than adequate rain."
If there would be a drought, Pankey said the airport would connect with the Tusayan water system again, which would be a simple process.
Besides the good-tasting water and delivery to airport tenants, the new system gives the airport impressive firefighting capabilities.
"We have fire hydrants all over the airport," Pankey said. "It's extra protection that's been improved over the old system."
A 375,000-gallon underground storage tank holds water that is ready to distribute if the airport finds itself fighting a fire. The tank, which the airport has had all along, meets minimum standards for fire protection, Pankey said.
Overall, the airport has about 2.4 million gallons of untreated water in storage. The 375,000-gallon underground tank holds treated water. Williamson said in a 24-hour period, the system is capable of treating 108,000 gallons of water.
"There's lots of storage because of the seasonality of the rain," Williamson said. "We went from a 10-day supply to a 200-day supply."
Two airport staffers serve as operations supervisors with the new water system and monitor the equipment daily. Alex O'Campo, a 10-year airport employee, is an experienced emergency medical technician and Bill Ballard, a former Phoenix Fire Department firefighter, has a power plant background.
There's a state-of-the-art alarm system at the water plant. If a problem is encountered or things are not running adequately, it calls an operator. There's even a voice transmitter that describes the type of alert.
If there is a problem with power, the plant includes a generator capable of taking over in 19 seconds.
"The emergency generator down there is strong enough to light up all of Tusayan," said Pankey, who added that there two other generators for the runway and airport tower.
Williamson said he tests the generator once per week and the system also tests itself once per week.
“We're not going to run out of power here," he said.
The water plant was designed to easily expand. Pankey said with no further airport expansion, the system is designed to be self-sustaining through at least 2010. Average capacity can grow 10 percent per year if it needs to, Williamson added.
Future plans may call for another 3 million gallons of storage being installed on the south end of the airport, Pankey said.
Some may wonder why the airport sees such potential for expansion with federal overflight restrictions beginning Dec. 1. Pankey said only 25 percent of the airport's business is related to overflights.
"The airport serves a broad market," Pankey said. "Seventy-five percent fly in from all over the state and Las Vegas ... get on a bus, eat a buffet lunch and go see the Canyon."
The airport is the second-busiest in the state during the peak tourism season.
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