3Kings Water Treatment plant is officially open

Park City government officials and waterworks staff celebrate the opening of 3Kings Water Treatment Plant in Thaynes Canyon. Photo: Park City Municipal

The 3Kings Water Treatment Plant's opening means better quality water for Parkites. It can produce 7.2 million gallons of drinking water per day.

PARK CITY, Utah – City officials announced the 3Kings Water Treatment Plant in Thaynes Canyon is now producing water for the municipal system.

According to the municipal government, the facility began producing 1.5 million gallons of water daily for the system last week, or roughly half of the current water Parkites demand. During the summer months when residents of Park City use more water to keep their lawns green, that usage increases to almost 8 million gallons per day. The 3Kings plant will be able to produce 7.2 million gallons a day when demand rises.

Construction on the facility started in 2019 and cost $80 million to complete, funded by water-user fees. It is located along Three Kings Drive near the Park City Golf Club course.

The new water facility will be crucial to improving the overall quality of Park City’s water. It opens on the heels of The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) new regulations on perfluoroalkyl and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which drastically lower permissible levels of these “forever chemicals” from 70 parts per trillion to just four parts per trillion.

The water plant is designed to treat water that flows out of the Judge Tunnel, the Spiro Tunnel and Thiriot Springs for a range of contaminants like arsenic, antimony, iron, manganese, zinc, thallium, cadmium and lead.

Park City relied on underground sources for drinking water dating back to the silver mining era, which led to contamination issues for decades. Over the years, the city’s efforts led to various improvements, such as upgrades to the Quinn’s Junction treatment plant, construction of a new plant along Holiday Ranch Loop Road, and replacement of a tank near Judge Tunnel south of Old Town.

The opening of the 3Kings Water Treatment Plant came after Park City discovered PFAS in three of its groundwater wells, which were sourced from a common aquifer beneath a golf and cross-country ski course. Concentrations reached up to eight parts per trillion—double the new EPA limit. In response to the findings, Park City proactively banned fluorinated ski wax last year, which was identified as a contributing source to the PFAS contamination.

Officials began testing the facility in October of 2023 for a planned startup by the first of June.