The effluent released by the CWC member agencies has such high quality and goes through extremely rigorous cleaning for many reasons several of which are listed below.

Water Quality and Environmental Protection: The most important reasons effluent is so highly treated is to protect the environment. Effluent that has been treated to such a high degree has fewer impacts on the water bodies and ecosystems into which it is reintroduced.

Return Flow Credits: The water we treat and return to the Colorado River System makes us eligible for return flow credits.  By law, Nevada is allowed to take out and use 300,000 acre feet of water per year from the Colorado River System.  However, the law also states that for every gallon of water we reclaim from our community and return to the River system, we may then draw an additional gallon of water from the River.  Today, based on our return flow credits, we draw close to 200,000 additional acre feet of water from the Colorado River.

Potable Water Conservation: Because we live in a desert, our drinking (potable) water is a precious commodity. We strongly support and encourage that potable water be used mainly for its most critical purpose - as drinking water and for personal use. And, where appropriate and beneficial, that effluent be reclaimed and reused for such purposes as watering golf courses, public parks and highway medians, and as an industrial coolant (at industrial businesses such as power plants). This ensures that potable water is utilized by the people in our community and is not lost on outdoor landscaping and other consumptive uses.