Address:

45 Tell Tale Lane.


Our mission is to effectively provide a high quality sewage collection and treatment service to our customers in a professional, economical and reliable manner, and to protect public health and the environment by adhering to the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit as issued by the USEPA.


The Carlsbad Sewage Collections System is owned, operated, and under direct supervision by the City of Carlsbad Water Department. The sewage system is gravity-fed until it reaches one of twelve sewage lift stations. It is then pumped up and allowed to gravity feed to the next station. All of the twelve stations feed one primary lift station, which pumps all the collected sewage to the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP).

The Carlsbad Wastewater Treatment Plant processes over 2.5 million gallons of sewage each day. The plant is designed to handle as much as 6.0 million gallons of sewage per day. The plant is an activated sludge process, equipped with primary and secondary clarification, and with chlorination and dechlorination systems for the effluent water before it is discharged into the Pecos River. The solids handling system consists of anaerobic digesters and paved sludge drying beds. Pathogen reduction is achieved via the composting process. The plant produces Class A sludge which, combined with wood mulch, grass clippings or leaves, produces a premium quality soil amendment product which is then utilized at City parks and golf courses. The compost facility is located at the Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Reporting Sewer Problems:

If a customer believes that a problem (possible stoppage, odor) may exist with the city sewer mainline, they may call and report the possible problem at (575) 887-5412, or after hours or weekends at (575) 885-2111.

Line Locates:

If any excavation is to take place, the person doing the excavation is required by law to call “NM One Call” at (800) 321-2537 or ‘811’. The City of Carlsbad has maps which show the locations of the City’s sewer mainlines only, there are currently no maps which show the location of the customer’s sewer lines.

Compost Facility

The Carlsbad Compost Program started in 1994 as a pilot program. Our program has increased steadily. It was started to increase the life span of the landfill by using tree branches, grass, leaves, paper and other carbon products and adding them to the biosolids (sludge) produced at the Wastewater Treatment Plant.


At the compost facility, dewatered biosolids are combined with other organic materials such as wood mulch produced by the Solid Waste Department to create a moist, porous mixture. Special mixing and turning equipment is used to optimize natural aerobic microbial processes which convert the mixture into a premium quality soil builder. 135 degrees F heat produced by naturally occurring microbes pasteurizes the material, killing unwanted bacteria and viruses. After 6 weeks of composting and curing, the compost is screened to remove large particles, yielding a pleasing, odor free product ready for use. Test results demonstrate that the product meets the most stringent USEPA limits for heavy metals content, permitting its unrestricted use for any horticultural purpose.

Contact: Matt Warner

Email: mewarner@cityofcarlsbadnm.com

Phone: (575) 887-5412

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