The Green Well Project is made possible through a strategic partnership with Salt Lake County. The Salt Lake County Council has appropriated $3 million in federal America Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds toward the project. The Riverton City Council has appropriated $600-$700 thousand in ARPA funds, in addition to providing roughly $2.1 million worth of existing Green Well infrastructure. One of the federal government’s allowable uses of ARPA funds is investment in water infrastructure. No debt will be incurred, and no taxes or fees will be raised because of this project.

It is anticipated that 1,300 gallons of purified culinary water will be produced per minute, or over 1.8 million gallons per day, at the Green Well. This equates to roughly a production of 2,000-acre feet of water per year. The well is projected to provide up to an estimated 30% of Riverton’s current culinary water needs during peak summer use and possibly over 45% during the winter. These are engineer projections only.

Riverton residents will see very little, if any, impact when Green Well water begins to supplement the city’s culinary water supply. Because water quality will meet, and possibly exceed, the quality of water currently provided by Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District following the reverse osmosis purification process, residents can expect little to no change in their culinary water taste, hardness and overall quality.

The increase in supply of culinary water will help keep water rates for Riverton residents low in the future as the city approaches build-out in the next 10 years. Riverton City will continue to purchase water wholesale from JVWCD, but the addition of Green Well water will reduce the amount of water the city would otherwise need to purchase from JVWCD as the city approaches build-out.

Riverton City will continue to purchase water wholesale from JVWCD, but the addition of Green Well water will reduce the amount of water by about 2000-acre feet per year that the city would otherwise need to purchase from JVWCD as the city approaches build-out, saving hundreds of thousands of dollars per year for Riverton residents.

Water produced at the Green Well will be purified using a reverse osmosis plant. This process will bring the water to a quality that meets or exceeds that of the culinary water provided to the city by Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District (JVWCD). There will be no substantial difference in the taste, hardness or overall quality of culinary water residents currently receive when the Green Well and reverse osmosis plant begin operations.

The Green Well is a sustainable source of water. An external geological analysis conducted by Bowen Collins & Associates in 2021 determined the underground aquifer that feeds the Green Well has a life expectancy of greater than 20 years, though it is expected it will last much longer. Typical life expectancy of wells similar to the Green Well are over 50 years.  Click here to view the analysis.

The existing Green Well building, located to the north of Dr. O. Roi Hardy Park in Riverton, will be expanded to house the reverse osmosis purification plant. A variable flow drive pump will be installed on the well to manage water pressure.

The total cost of the project is about $3.7 million. The Salt Lake County Council has appropriated $3 million in federal America Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds toward the project. The Riverton City Council has appropriated $600-$700 thousand in ARPA funds. Riverton City has invested roughly $2.1 million worth of existing Green Well infrastructure since construction began on the well 2011. One of the federal government’s allowable uses of ARPA funds is investment in water infrastructure. No debt will be incurred, and no taxes or fees will be raised because of this project.

A reverse osmosis plant purifies water by using membrane technology to remove impurities such as minerals, calcium, sodium and more. This is done by sending water at a high pressure through a semi-permeable membrane. The membrane traps various impurities, which are then removed from the system through a discharge process. Reverse osmosis is a common process used throughout the world to produce high quality drinking water.

The Green Well is one of Riverton City’s high-capacity culinary water wells. The well was established in 2012 to provide culinary water to Riverton residents. It was only used until 2015, when the city transitioned to purchasing all culinary water wholesale from Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District. Since that time, well water is tested on a routine basis for water quality and reporting purposes but is otherwise not in use.

The reverse osmosis purification plant uses membrane technology to filter impurities such as minerals, calcium, sodium from water. Periodic backwash is required to clean the filter. This produces discharge water.

Riverton City has applied for, and received, a permit from the Utah Department of Environmental Quality to discharge water into the Jordan River, located just to the east of the Green Well. The permit (UPDES Permit No. UT0026212) has been effective since April 1, 2022. Click here to view the permit.

Following a public bid process, Riverton City has contracted with Total Water Management to install a reverse osmosis purification plant on the Green Well. 

Current Riverton City staff responsible for maintaining the city’s water infrastructure will manage and maintain the reverse osmosis plant moving forward. It will not be necessary to hire additional staff.

The Salt Lake County Council has generously appropriated $3 million in federal America Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds toward the Green Well Project. In return for this critical water infrastructure investment, Riverton City and Salt Lake County have entered into a new agreement that will provide well water to the county’s Riverbend Golf Course in Riverton at a reduced water rate that will save county taxpayers nearly $100,000 per year for the next 20 years, a total savings of over $2 million.

Though the untreated well water produced at the Green Well is currently culinary grade drinking water, the quality is below that of the water provided by Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District (JVWCD). The reverse osmosis plant will improve the quality of water produced at the Green Well to ensure it meets or exceeds that of the culinary water provided to the city by JVWCD.

Culinary water rates in Riverton will not change as a result of this project. Because the project is being funded with federal America Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money provided to both Salt Lake County and Riverton City, no debt will be incurred, and no taxes or fees will be raised because of this project.

In fact, because this project will increase culinary water supply, Riverton City will save hundreds of thousands of dollars per year that would otherwise need to be paid to Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District to purchase additional water as the city approaches build-out.

Riverton residents can expect little to no change in culinary water taste, hardness and overall quality compared to what they currently receive from Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District (JVWCD). This is because water produced at the Green Well will be purified in a reverse osmosis plant to ensure that water distributed in the culinary water system meets, or possibly exceeds, that of the quality provided by JVWCD.

As Riverton approaches build out in the next 10 years, Riverton City will not need to purchase as much water from Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District because of the increase in supply of culinary water that will be provided by the Green Well and purified in the reverse osmosis plant.