Town of Wenden celebrates new water plant, eliminates plastic bottles

With accessible clean drinking water a hot global issue, the residents of Wenden, Arizona can now confidently quench their thirst.

For many years, residents of the small town in rural La Paz County hesitated to drink the tap water, due to its high fluoride content and spikes in arsenic levels that required further drilling and a state-mandated Fluoride and Arsenic Treatment Plant to be built.

Even though most levels of concern were from decades ago, people transitioned to drinking plastic bottled or commercial bulk water only. With the completion of the years-long, nearly $1.8 million Fluoride and Arsenic Removal Project (FAR), the town is celebrating by declaring ‘Plastic Bottle Free Zones.’

The Wenden Domestic Water Improvement District plans to donate reusable metal sport bottles to every student, teacher and staff of Wenden Elementary School to mark the accomplishment.

“This is a teachable moment and students need to learn that water does not come from plastic bottles, but from the ancient aquifer that lies below their feet,” said De Vona J. Saiter, the Director of Public Relations and Community Development for Wenden Water District.

For years, students were given plastic bottles to drink from and dispose of daily, which led to thousands of bottles filling the landfill from only one small school of approximately 120 people.

“This one act of change can make a significant and positive impact against the environmental detriment from the manufacturing and disposal of plastic bottles,” reads a press release sent to Parker Live. “This is an example for others to follow. The Wenden Domestic Water Improvement grounds, Wenden Elementary School Campus, Mas Paz Shop and La Paloma Gallery have been declared ‘plastic bottle free zones’. New metal reusable bottles are sold at these locations and some local residents are buying them in support to eliminating or limit any plastic disposable bottles.”

Presentation of the new water bottles was made at Wenden Elementary School Thursday, with water board members, school board members, residents and county representatives in attendance. As of January 14th, the entire campus will be a plastic bottle free zone.