OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — Oak Ridge may soon have a new water treatment facility, helping them keep up with the city's growing demands and replacing a plant from 1943.
On Wednesday, they broke ground on the site of the new facility. The new ultrafiltration membrane drink water treatment plant will cost around $78.3 million and will be able to treat up to 12 million gallons of water per day. It will also be able to meet water demands from the Department of Energy, helping keep research and manufacturing facilities running in the area.
The original 1943 plant was originally owned and operated by the U.S. Department of Energy and sold water to Oak Ridge to give to residents and businesses. In 2000, the facility was transferred to the city.
“This plant provides every drop of water to our 31,000 residents from Elza Gate on the East, to the Preserve on the West, and to all DOE facilities, most notably Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex, which will soon include the new Uranium Processing Facility,” said Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch. “Our new plant will produce high-quality drinking water and deliver it through new pipelines more reliably and efficiently than current operations.”
The project will include new raw water intake pumps, traveling screens, a finished water pump station as well as water pipelines. Existing water tanks will also be rehabilitated, according to a press release.
The project is partly funded by the State of Tennessee Revolving Loan Fund and around $21 million came from the EPA's Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act. Congressman Chuck Fleischmann also is expected to provide around $8.5 million in federal funding.
The new facility was designed by Jacobs Engineering Group and will be involved in the construction. It will be built by Bowen Engineering Corporation.
