City of Tulsa to Participate in ‘Imagine a Day Without Water’

10/4/2018

National Effort to Raise Awareness, Educate the Public about the Value of Water

The City of Tulsa is participating in the national advocacy movement, Imagine a Day Without Water Oct. 10. On this day across the country, organizations, corporations and environmental advocates are joining together to educate the nation on how essential water and wastewater services are to communities and the importance of making necessary investments for future generations.  

To help celebrate and increase public awareness of Tulsa’s quality water, the City of Tulsa will attend the Tulsa Zoo Run Oct. 6 to hand out 1,500 complimentary reusable water bottles and provide samples of award-winning Tulsa water from the City’s water trailer. (See below for a list of the “20 Top Things We’d Give Up on a Day Without Water”)

Here are a few important facts about Tulsa’s water and wastewater:

• The City of Tulsa supplies on average 103 million gallons of drinking water each day to more than 500,000 people in the metropolitan area through 2,237 miles of water lines. Mohawk and A.B. Jewell treatment plants, distribution lines, and other infrastructure are in place to help keep pace with Tulsa's growing need for high quality drinking water. 
• On the wastewater side, Tulsa treats on average 55 million gallons of wastewater each day.
• There are 1,960 miles of underground trunk and collection system sewer lines in Tulsa, and 62 lift stations that move the water to four major treatment plants – Northside, Southside, Haikey Creek and Lower Bird Creek. 

“Here in Tulsa we’re fortunate to have a plentiful supply of good, reliable water that’s available for ready use to residents and businesses,” said Clayton Edwards, Water & Sewer Department Director. “I am proud to work with dedicated City of Tulsa employees who give up their time with their families on holidays and weekends to make sure our entire water and wastewater system is well operated and maintained.” 

The City of Tulsa’s Water & Sewer Department is responsible for the lifecycle of Tulsa’s water, which begins at our lakes, continues with treatment and distribution to our customers, and finishes with our sewer collection and wastewater treatment systems before being discharged back into area rivers – all while being tested and monitored numerous times throughout the process.

The Tulsa Metropolitan Utility Authority is a public trust organization created by the City charter and responsible for water and sewer policy matters by managing, constructing and maintaining Tulsa's water and sanitary sewer systems. 

Learn more about the City of Tulsa’s water and wastewater systems by visiting www.tulsawater.com You can also visit http://imagineadaywithoutwater.org/ to learn more about Imagine a Day Without Water. 

Top 20 Things We Would Give Up On a Day Without Water

Without water, we wouldn’t be able to do all kinds of everyday tasks we take for granted. Here are some of the top things Tulsans would have to go without if we didn’t have water for a day:

1. No clean water from the faucet

2. No drinking fountains in schools or along running paths

3. No wetting your toothbrush to brush your teeth

4. No shower or washing your hair

5. No coffee to wake you up in the morning

6. No filling a water bowl for your pets

7. No flushing the toilet when you have to go

8. No running a load of dishes in the dishwasher from last night’s dinner

9. No turning on the sprinkler to keep your lawn green

10. No doing a load of laundry to wash your clothes

11. No using water to cook food

12. No washing vegetables from the farmer’s market

13. No water for firefighters to use to put out fires

14. No watering your indoor plants or flowers in your garden

15. No ice for your drinks and coolers

16. No washing germs off your hands when they’re dirty

17. No water for medical or dental procedures

18. No emergency sprinklers in office buildings

19. No water for restaurants to be open

20. No water for a wide range of manufacturing purposes