Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, filed the “Central Texas Water Recycling Act of 2005” Wednesday, which would authorize the federal government to help Waco and surrounding communities pay for a regional wastewater treatment facility.

Recycled treated wastewater could be used for such things as golf course and landscape irrigation and industrial cooling, Edwards said.

"Does it make sense to pump drinking water on golf courses when we can use recycled water?" Edwards said.

The bill calls for the federal government to provide as much as 25 percent of the total cost of the facility. Operations and maintenance funds would come from state and local governments, Edwards said.

"Conserving our community's water resources and reducing demand on Lake Waco will prove vital in the future, as population growth increases demand for available water resources," Edwards said.

"Water reuse projects like this will become more and more valuable to cities and states,” he said.