Part of Oklahoma City’s new 2022 budget approved this week by the city council includes nearly $112 million toward construction of a second line to carry water from southeast Oklahoma’s Atoka Lake.
The money is part of a $1.65 billion annual budget approved by the council on a 7-2 vote.
The total Atoka pipeline budget for the city is $121 million and $111.7 million will fund the construction of the $800 million second pipeline. The new line will involve construction of a 66-inch pipeline that will be parallel to the existing line.
A year ago, the Oklahoma City Water Utilities Trust announced plans to expand the city water system by 36 million gallons a day to 111 million gallons a day.
The pipeline and pumping system that carries water from the Atoka Lake to Oklahoma City is more than 50 years old.