Death Valley Breaks Ground on $69.5M Water Upgrade
The three-year Furnace Creek Water Systems Rehabilitation Project will modernize aging utilities in Death Valley National Park.
Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in National Parks
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Death Valley National Park broke ground on October 21, 2025, on the $69.5 million Furnace Creek Water Systems Rehabilitation Project. The work replaces aging water and wastewater infrastructure, some of which dates to the 1960s, and is funded through the Legacy Restoration Fund.
Why it matters
Failures of the park's utility systems in recent years led to boil water advisories, periodic outages, temporary campground closures and sewage spills. For California readers planning park visits, the project aims to provide more reliable water and sanitation for visitors and employees.
The $69.5 million investment is funded through the Legacy Restoration Fund created by the Great American Outdoors Act. The park's visitor spending in 2024 totaled about $146 million in gateway communities, but the extraction does not detail how that figure compares with prior years.
The players
Death Valley National Park
A national park in California's Mojave Desert known for extreme heat, low elevations and some of the lowest temperatures and highest recorded air temperatures in North America.
Donald Trump
The current President of the United States, who signed the Great American Outdoors Act into law in 2019.
The details
Aging water systems and wastewater infrastructure will be modernized over three years, including replacing the water treatment plant building at Cow Creek and rehabilitating the Furnace Creek water treatment plant. Construction will be carried out in phases, with brief, localized water outages and temporary parking reductions possible.
Timeline
The Great American Outdoors Act was signed into law in 2019.
The groundbreaking ceremony was held on October 21, 2025.
Construction will be phased over a three-year period.
Seasonal Patterns
The Great American Outdoors Act's Legacy Restoration Fund is being used to replace infrastructure at Death Valley that dates to the 1960s and has been repeatedly repaired. Intense desert conditions have accelerated deterioration of pipelines, valves and other infrastructure at the park.
Visitors may experience brief, localized water outages and temporary parking reductions during construction. Checking the park's official website before a trip can help travelers plan around service changes.
The takeaway
Reliable infrastructure underpins access to remote desert parks, and the Legacy Restoration Fund is enabling rebuilding instead of ongoing patching. Travelers to Death Valley should expect short, localized service interruptions during the next three years.
What happens next
Brief, localized water outages and temporary parking reductions may occur during the three-year construction phases.
Further reading
Explore more on National Parks to see how other parks manage infrastructure and visitor access.
More information
Check service changes on the Death Valley National Park website before planning a visit.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Pahrump Valley Times.
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