Red Springs’ water treatment plant (WTP) was built in 1969 with a capacity of 1.0 million-gallons-per-day (MGD) and consisted of one static aerator, one flash mixing basin, one flocculation basin, one sedimentation basin, and three pressure sand filters. The WTP was expanded to 1.5 MGD in the mid-1980s.
While the WTP processes were effective and the Town was safely treating water to all required standards, the equipment was showing its age at the more than 50-year-old WTP, which is the Town’s sole, reliable source of potable water. That coupled with the fact there was only one treatment train, which made it nearly impossible to meet water demand and perform needed maintenance/repairs, left the Town in a precarious position.
Another significant problem: the Town estimated that close to 50% of the water from their groundwater supply wells was not being billed due to losses from several areas, including WTP filter backwash, spilled water at the static aerator, losses at the sedimentation basin, unmetered use throughout Town, and leaks and water main breaks within the distribution system. This led to higher operational and maintenance costs with less revenue to pay for needed repairs and maintenance of the system.
Planning for upgrades to the Town’s water treatment and distribution system began in late 2017 with WithersRavenel, and included examining options for replacing the WTP, improving the three groundwater supply wells, completing elevated tank upgrades, and replacing some failing galvanized water lines in Town.
WithersRavenel helped the Town successfully apply for and receive more than $9 million in USDA-RD grant and low-interest loan funding to cover the system’s significant rehabilitation and replacement needs. The Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) was completed and funding for the project was allocated in July 2018, and design for the project began in January 2019.
The Town wanted to explore the option of a membrane ultrafiltration water treatment system. Design for the water treatment plant included the installation of two new skid-mounted hollow fiber membrane filter assemblies (each with a capacity of 1.5 MGD for redundancy), one skid-mounted backwash assembly, one skid-mounted membrane filter cleaning assembly, two sodium hypochlorite feed systems, two sodium hydroxide feed systems, and one lime storage/feed system. System improvements included:
- An all-new WTP filter and chemical storage building (with space for a third membrane assembly to be added in the future)
- An all-new Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system for monitoring the WTP, groundwater wells, and elevated storage tanks.
- Cleaning and sludge removal from two existing clearwells at the WTP.
- New altitude valves at each of the three elevated storage tanks in Town to allow one tank to be brought back into operation that was installed at a different elevation.
- A new influent and effluent meter for the WTP.
- Cleaning and rehabilitation of all three groundwater wells.
- Improvements to Well Buildings 1 and 2.
- Replacement of the building for Well 3.
- Replacement of 8,000 LF of failing 2-inch waterline with 6-inch PVC waterline.
The WithersRavenel-led project was successfully completed by Harper General Contractors in January 2022. The Town is now prepared for the future with a system that is more efficient, easier to maintain, and provides better-quality water to customers.
