Plant Tours

Get a behind-the-scenes look at our vital work

Have you ever wanted to see how the water we use is cleaned up and returned to nature? Then consider taking a plant tour of the District’s Nine Springs Wastewater Treatment Plant. On our plant tours, you’ll learn about our treatment process and how you can help protect our shared water resources.

TOURS Of Nine Springs Wastewater Treatment Plant

The District offers hour-long tours of the treatment plant to anyone who would like to see our processes for cleaning water, learn about the water cycle or hear pollution prevention tips. District tours are open to all ages, but all minors must be accompanied by a responsible adult.

Tours are free, but prior reservations are required. Note that tours may be canceled due to weather or other factors. If a tour is canceled, the District will contact those who have RSVPed.

First FRiday Tours

For individuals or small groups that would like a high-level tour.

This free, 90-minute general plant tour is open to all members of the community, including children who are accompanied by a responsible adult.

Tours are generally held the first Friday of the month at noon during spring, summer and fall.

First Friday Tickets

Group OR Specialty Tours

For groups of 5 or more people interested in touring the plant during business hours.

This 60- to 90-minute tour can cover general information about the plant that is appropriate for youth groups, school field trips, secondary education excursions, membership organizations or groups of professional adults. Tours can be scheduled year-round as conditions allow.

Groups that have a particular focus area or would like detailed technical information about the plant may indicate their preferences in the ‘Group description’ field on the request form.

Group Tour Request

Plant Tour Policies and Procedures

To ensure the safety and enjoyment of all tour participants, please review the following information.

Attire

Closed-toe, sturdy, flat-soled shoes are required of all tour participants. Sandals, open-toe shoes and high heels are not allowed. We suggest wearing comfortable clothes as there will be a lot of walking and stair climbing on the tour. We do not cancel our tours due to weather unless it poses a danger to our visitors, so dress appropriately for the weather.

Safety

It is important that visitors follow all safety guidelines. Prior to the tour, please review the District’s safety information and expectations for tour groups and share this information with all members of your group.

Accessibility

The standard tour route includes stairs and a good deal of walking, sometimes on uneven surfaces and grass. Some parts of the route are not accessible to individuals with physical disabilities. However, with advance notice, we can make modifications to the route to accommodate all visitors.

Group Size

We try to accommodate all tour requests.

Maximum Group Size: To keep tour group sizes manageable and help ensure adequate supervision of groups of children, large groups will be divided into smaller ones. Individual tour groups will generally be capped at approximately 15 people, or one class. Groups larger than 15 require multiple tour guides and necessitate special scheduling with the tour coordinator.

Minimum Group Size: Tour groups of 5 or more people are recommended. If you are an individual interested in a tour, you can still contact us to request a tour. We will try to combine these individual requests with other tours when possible, so individuals may need to be flexible on the date and time of the tour. Individuals or small groups are encouraged to attend an open First Friday tour, held the first Friday of every month at 12 noon.

Chaperones

The District requires adult chaperones for tour groups of minors. Each tour group must have an appropriate number of adult chaperones (not including the tour guide), as defined by grade level below:

High school: At least one adult chaperone per tour group
Middle school: At least one adult chaperone per group of 20 or fewer students; at least two adult chaperones per group of 20+ students
Elementary school: At least one adult chaperone per seven students
Younger than elementary school: At least one adult per two children

Wayfinding and Navigation

For plant tours and special events, the District will open Gate 2 for easy access to the Shop One building. View our wayfinding routes.

Take a virtual tour!

Explore the plant from the comfort of your computer by taking our virtual plant tour.

With our virtual tour, you can move around on the map to see pictures of different steps in the
treatment process and water’s journey beyond the plant.

Virtual Tour