Dear Editor,

On Friday, Feb. 17, 2023, Tri-City Regional Sanitary District (TRSD) hosted a meeting/workshop for Washington D.C.-based USDA-Rural Development (RD) senior staff in Water and Environment Programs.

The meeting addressed water quality and quantity topics in Gila County in general and the local TRSD Wastewater Collection, Treatment and Reuse Project in particular.

Representatives from a variety of groups within the state of Arizona attended the meeting.

Space does not permit naming all of those representatives, but the groups included National and State USDA-RD, Rural Water Association of Arizona (RWAAZ), Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), Gila County, Water Infrastructure Finance Authority of Arizona (WIFA) and Arizona Water Corporation (AWC). The broad depth of support by these groups for the TRSD Project is amazing and appreciated.

Importantly, the USDA-RD, at both the state and federal levels, recognizes the need for and importance of this project to the residents of the district and to southern Gila County. They are committed to seeing the project through to a successful conclusion.

The TRSD Board of Directors, its advisory staff and PACE (TRSD’s project engineering team) are equally committed to the project and, with the continued input from the aforementioned groups, will achieve that goal.

In closing, on behalf of the TRSD Board, I would like to thank RD State Director Charlene Fernandez and Deputy State Director Alesia Stanley for inviting the Washington D. C.-based staff to visit our district and allowing us to host this highly visible and very successful meeting/workshop. We look forward to hosting similar events as the opportunity is presented to us.

Robert B. Jacques, TRSD board president