Wetlands and Effluent Area

Members of Milagro have long been deeply concerned regarding recycling, especially water, in the desert where there is so little. These concerns induced us to choose to recycle all of our wastewater.

Wastewater Recycling

One of the more innovative features of Milagro is that all household wastewater is processed through a constructed wetlands system that uses natural plants and bacteria to process the water and make it suitable for reclaim. From there, it is recirculated to our community vegetation by sub-surface irrigation.

Milagro Wetlands

Milagro engineered and maintains a wetlands wastewater treatment and reclamation process. 

Waste is first received from the homes by septic tanks which settle the solids. Septic outflow is fed to one of two treatment beds. These treatment beds are 18 inches of gravel with a plastic 20-millimeter liner to avoid losing the liquid into the ground. The gravel is topped with mulch, mostly woodchips, which is planted with sedges. The wastewater flows in one end of the treatment bed and overflows out the other end. During its time in the gravel bed it is further decomposed by bacteria living on the roots of the plants and on the surface of the gravel. The outflow from the treatment beds is gathered in a one thousand-gallon collection tank. A pump moves the reclaimed wastewater from that tank up through the center of the community where it is delivered from below ground to our landscaping. There is no odor.

Our water recycling efforts are paying off. Our community is alive with green, growing plants and trees. Our water bills are minimal. We’ve been told that most individuals in Tucson use at least 150 gallons of water per person per day. While we have yet to reach our goal of using less than 50 gallons of water per person per day, we are getting closer.