DRINKING WATER
AMERICAN And Partners Install Boltless Restrained Underwater Pipeline System In Ashland, Wisconsin
Beneath the waters of Chequamegon Bay on Lake Superior in Ashland, Wisconsin, about 4,500 feet of 24-inch AMERICAN Flex-Ring Ductile Iron Pipe and a submerged timber crib intake structure were installed to ensure the city’s residents have quality drinking water for the next 100 years. The Ashland Water Intake Project began May 1, 2025, and is now complete.
DRINKING WATER CASE STUDIES AND WHITE PAPERS
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A Golden Spike In Revenue, Efficiency, And Customer Service With The R900® System
In 2008, the public utility manager in Ogden City, Utah sent out a request for proposal on a system-wide changeout of its meters, absolute encoders, and radio frequency meter interface units (RF MIUs), with a goal of eliminating estimating and replacing all their meters with AMR technology to read year-round. Read the full case study to learn more.
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Using ATP In A Legionella Water Management Plan
Between December 2014 and September 2015 there were three clusters of Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks in the Bronx, New York City. Legionnaires’ disease, a severe form of pneumonia, is caused by inhaling aerosolized water containing certain pathogenic strains of Legionella bacteria. Legionella thrive in warm, stagnant water with low disinfection residuals such as hot water tanks, hot tubs, cooling towers, decorative fountains and showerheads.
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![GettyImages-1067048488 tango]( "It Takes Two To Tango: Effective Water Loss Management")
It Takes Two To Tango: Effective Water Loss ManagementReducing non-revenue water (NRW) and managing water loss is a critical challenge in water utilities. However, it’s important to understand that there’s no magic solution to this problem.
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![phoenix-project]( "AMERICAN SpiralWeld Pipe Delivers For City Of Phoenix Drought Pipeline Project")
AMERICAN SpiralWeld Pipe Delivers For City Of Phoenix Drought Pipeline ProjectPhoenix’s Drought Pipeline Project, supported by AMERICAN SpiralWeld Pipe, secures clean water for North Phoenix, delivering up to 75 million gallons daily and earning top industry awards.
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![2021_Electro-Scan_Pipe-Wall-Thickness_White-Paper-7]( "A New Standard For Measuring Pipe Wall Thickness Of Asbestos Cement Pipe")
A New Standard For Measuring Pipe Wall Thickness Of Asbestos Cement PipeInternal pipe Low Voltage Alternating Current Gradient (LVACG) machine-intelligent technology can be used for assessing pressurized water mains for leaks and measuring pipe wall thickness.
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![GettyImages-1178975094]( "A Better Way: An Application For Risk Characterization of HABs On The Ohio River")
A Better Way: An Application For Risk Characterization of HABs On The Ohio RiverWhen you think of water, you might imagine deep blue ocean waves crashing against a shoreline or perhaps the still calm of a forested lake, but on an August morning in the summer of 2015, the lockmaster at the Pike Island Lock and Dam saw something much different. That day, EPA’s regional office in Wheeling, WV, received a concerned phone call from the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO) notifying them of what was described as “antifreeze-green colored paint” flowing down the Ohio River. But this was no paint spill. Rather, Microcystis, a naturally occurring species of cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, known to produce toxins harmful to animals and humans, was quickly taking over one of the most influential rivers in the continental U.S.
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![Made By AMERICAN: Strong-As-Steel Support For New Topsail Island Bridge]( "Made By AMERICAN: Strong-As-Steel Support For New Topsail Island Bridge")
Made By AMERICAN: Strong-As-Steel Support For New Topsail Island BridgeThe North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) is building a new, high-rise bridge to span the Intracoastal Waterway in Surf City, replacing a 1950s era swing-span bridge that has come to the end of its efficient service life in Pender County. Buried under the waters of the new Topsail Island Bridge is AMERICAN SpiralWeld Pipe. While AMERICAN’s spiral-welded steel pipe is most often used in water delivery, it also excels as drilled shaft casing pipe used in the formation of cast-in-place concrete piles.
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![gettyimages-1173122176-170667a]( "What Is Sustainable Flocculation And What Are Sustainable Flocculants?")
What Is Sustainable Flocculation And What Are Sustainable Flocculants?In most standard drinking water and wastewater treatment systems, there is a flocculation process that is used to reduce the concentrations of solids within the effluent stream. This particular process makes use of substances that aid in the clumping together of suspended particles among other contaminants in a clarifier system.
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From Conventional To Smart: Lessons From Building One Of The Largest Smart Meter Networks In Europe
Digitalization paves the way for cost reduction in water utilities, thanks to greater process efficiency. To achieve success, both technology and the people factors need to be taken into account.
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![GettyImages-511920088_450_300]( "Arsenic Removal Technologies Pros And Cons")
Arsenic Removal Technologies Pros And ConsArsenic removal is theoretically simple but small community water systems often struggle to find the right solution. This article compares three prominent arsenic removal technologies.
DRINKING WATER APPLICATION NOTES
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Analyzing Total Organic Carbon In Sea Water4/2/2015
The analysis of Total Organic Carbon (TOC) in seawater can be both challenging and expensive. The concentration of organic carbon in seawater is of considerable interest. The effect this matrix can have on TOC analyzers can lead to rapid consumable turnover, costly maintenance and repairs.
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Pile Cloth Media Filtration Removes 97% Of Microplastics From Wastewater12/6/2023
Learn about filtering microplastics from industrial wastewater prior to discharge, and how this is one way to effectively reduce the volume of this waste material from entering our surface water.
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Application Note: Water Flows From The Golden Hills Of California1/20/2010Each morning John Johnson drives the few miles from his smalltown home in northern California to the Center at Pardee Reservoir. Nestled among the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, the reservoir is a long 100 miles away from San Francisco Bay. By YSI
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Protection Of Membrane Systems Utilized For Municipal Water12/1/2020
As water scarcity issues around the world become more acute, more municipalities are having to turn to alternative water sources for potable water supplies. Also, many municipalities in coastal areas are seeing the quality of their water sources degrade as sea water intrusion occurs.
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How To Install A Submersible Pump In Discharge Tubes11/28/2012
In the fields of water and waste water technology, submersible pumps represent a viable economic and technical alternative to conventional, dry-installed pumps. In particular, they offer a number of handling advantages during maintenance and installation work.
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Pipe Repair On A Budget3/7/2014
A new pipe-repair solution promises to save time and money, while also being sustainable, long-lasting, fully scalable, and safe for workers.
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Reduce Or Eliminate Water Hammer With Valve Positioners5/19/2022
Water hammer, which can occur in just about any pumping system and even steam systems, can lead to pipe breakage, equipment damage or even total system failure. Addressing water hammer at the source is the savviest and most cost-effective way to handle the issue.
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Determination Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Seafood4/20/2015
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a large group of organic compounds found naturally in the environment. PAHs are monitored by the US Environmental Protection Agency due to their carcinogenic characteristics.
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Determination Of Pesticide Residues In Honey, By An Automated QuEChERS Solution9/17/2014
The QuEChERS (Quick-Easy-Cheap-Effective-Rugged-Safe) sample extraction method was developed for the determination of pesticide residues in agricultural commodities.
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TOC Analysis: The Best Tool In A Drinking Water Facility's Toolbox5/3/2019
SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions designs and manufactures Sievers Total Organic Carbon (TOC) Analyzers that enable near real-time reporting of organic carbon levels for treatment optimization, quality control & regulatory compliance. TOC has a wide range of applicability at a drinking water plant, and therefore any drinking water utility — large or small — can measure TOC in their laboratory or online in their treatment process.
DRINKING WATER PRODUCTS
The J7000 Break Check Valve can be easily fitted to any Jones wet barrel hydrant.
Every drop costs you money The estimated cost associated with produced water treatment in the United States is approximately $18B. The cost of cleaning produced water is 300 times greater than municipal waste water and 3,000 times greater than irrigation water.
TrojanUV systems are installed for water providers who are adopting wastewater reuse to conserve natural drinking water supplies.
The MD50 Chlorine LR/HR Colorimeter combines a simple user interface with advanced optics to deliver the accurate and reliable results municipal and industrial users require - and packs a lot of features into a rugged, hand-held instrument.
LATEST INSIGHTS ON DRINKING WATER
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![LakeSuperior_Getty-1405284925]( "PFAS Are Turning Up In The Great Lakes, Putting Water Supplies At Risk — Here's How They Get There")
No matter where you live in the U.S., you have likely seen headlines about PFAS being detected in everything from drinking water to fish to milk to human bodies. Now, PFAS are posing a threat to the Great Lakes, one of America’s most vital water resources.
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![tractor_sludge_Getty-2155530305]( "Why Too Much Phosphorus In America's Farmland Is Polluting The Country's Water")
When people think about agricultural pollution, they often picture what is easy to see: fertilizer spreaders crossing fields or muddy runoff after a heavy storm. However, a much more significant threat is quietly and invisibly building in the ground. -
![EnvironmentPeople_004]( "Water In 2026: The Nexus Of Policy, Technology, And Resilience")
As water systems become more circular and complex, understanding and managing the subsurface — the hidden half of the water cycle — is becoming a critical enabler of resilience. This article explores the key trends shaping this new reality, from tackling “forever chemicals” to the water strategies redefining heavy industry. -
![Cutting Red Tape-GettyImages-502421630]( "How The NEPA Rollback Will Impact Water And Wastewater Industries")
The White House has finalized plans to roll back rules under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), narrowing its focus and limiting what the current administration claims are needless delays for federal approval of water, energy, and other infrastructure plans. For water and wastewater utilities, the changes could speed up permitting for critical projects, although experts warn the tradeoffs could do more harm than good. -
![Ultraviolet lamps for water disinfection-GettyImages-1271779123]( "Setting Global Standards: Inside North America's Only Full-Scale UV Disinfection Validation Facility")
Setting Global Standards: Inside North America's Only Full-Scale UV Disinfection Validation FacilityPortland's industry-leading facility reaches 100 reactor validations in 23 years. -
![Water analysis, purification, filtration, treatment, quality monitoring, contamination detection-GettyImages-2234293664]( "Why Haven't Field Tests For Lead In Water Gone Mainstream?")
Given the maturation of sensor technology, the scientific and operational hurdles to portable lead analysis are somewhat surprising — but surmountable.
DRINKING WATER VIDEOS
Appearing on The Weather Channel's "Wake Up With Al" morning show, water expert Dan Theobald puts drinking water to the test by measuring total dissolved solids (TDS) in tap water samples from Brooklyn, Manhattan, and New Jersey, as well as bottled water samples.
Discover how specialized restrained joints facilitate efficient horizontal directional drilling and bridge piping through a simplified, tool-free assembly process that ensures long-term reliability.
ABOUT DRINKING WATER
In most developed countries, drinking water is regulated to ensure that it meets drinking water quality standards. In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administers these standards under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).
Drinking water considerations can be divided into three core areas of concern:
- Source water for a community’s drinking water supply
- Drinking water treatment of source water
- Distribution of treated drinking water to consumers
Drinking Water Sources
Source water access is imperative to human survival. Sources may include groundwater from aquifers, surface water from rivers and streams and seawater through a desalination process. Direct or indirect water reuse is also growing in popularity in communities with limited access to sources of traditional surface or groundwater.
Source water scarcity is a growing concern as populations grow and move to warmer, less aqueous climates; climatic changes take place and industrial and agricultural processes compete with the public’s need for water. The scarcity of water supply and water conservation are major focuses of the American Water Works Association.
Drinking Water Treatment
Drinking Water Treatment involves the removal of pathogens and other contaminants from source water in order to make it safe for humans to consume. Treatment of public drinking water is mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the U.S. Common examples of contaminants that need to be treated and removed from water before it is considered potable are microorganisms, disinfectants, disinfection byproducts, inorganic chemicals, organic chemicals and radionuclides.
There are a variety of technologies and processes that can be used for contaminant removal and the removal of pathogens to decontaminate or treat water in a drinking water treatment plant before the clean water is pumped into the water distribution system for consumption.
The first stage in treating drinking water is often called pretreatment and involves screens to remove large debris and objects from the water supply. Aeration can also be used in the pretreatment phase. By mixing air and water, unwanted gases and minerals are removed and the water improves in color, taste and odor.
The second stage in the drinking water treatment process involves coagulation and flocculation. A coagulating agent is added to the water which causes suspended particles to stick together into clumps of material called floc. In sedimentation basins, the heavier floc separates from the water supply and sinks to form sludge, allowing the less turbid water to continue through the process.
During the filtration stage, smaller particles not removed by flocculation are removed from the treated water by running the water through a series of filters. Filter media can include sand, granulated carbon or manufactured membranes. Filtration using reverse osmosis membranes is a critical component of removing salt particles where desalination is being used to treat brackish water or seawater into drinking water.
Following filtration, the water is disinfected to kill or disable any microbes or viruses that could make the consumer sick. The most traditional disinfection method for treating drinking water uses chlorine or chloramines. However, new drinking water disinfection methods are constantly coming to market. Two disinfection methods that have been gaining traction use ozone and ultra-violet (UV) light to disinfect the water supply.
Drinking Water Distribution
Drinking water distribution involves the management of flow of the treated water to the consumer. By some estimates, up to 30% of treated water fails to reach the consumer. This water, often called non-revenue water, escapes from the distribution system through leaks in pipelines and joints, and in extreme cases through water main breaks.
A public water authority manages drinking water distribution through a network of pipes, pumps and valves and monitors that flow using flow, level and pressure measurement sensors and equipment.
Water meters and metering systems such as automatic meter reading (AMR) and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) allows a water utility to assess a consumer’s water use and charge them for the correct amount of water they have consumed.