Contact: Kathy Allen, Administrative Specialist, Greater Cincinnati Water Works / 513-591-7970
With a history of leadership in water treatment research, Greater Cincinnati Water Works (GCWW) continues to be recognized for outstanding water quality planning and research efforts.
GCWW, in collaboration with Malcolm Pirnie, Inc., Duke University and the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, recently completed a study that focused on concerns about the long-term quality of the Ohio River water supply titled “Strategic Planning for Disinfection Study.” This study received the American Academy of Environmental Engineers’ prestigious National Honor Award in the academy’s 2004 Excellence in Environmental Engineering competition. The American Council of Engineering Companies of Ohio also awarded this study the 2004 Outstanding Achievement Award.
In 1898 George Fuller, noted water treatment scientist, was hired by GCWW to study how to effectively treat Ohio River water in a cost-effective manner. Mr. Fuller came to Cincinnati and determined that rapid-sand filtration was effective. He was right. The number of new typhoid cases in Cincinnati dropped dramatically in the year following the opening of the California Plant. When the plant was completed in1908, it was the second major rapid-sand filtration plant built in the United States. The Richard Miller Treatment Plant was built at the same location. This plant, which uses granular activated carbon (GAC) to remove organics after rapid-sand filtration, is unique in that the exhausted carbon is reactivated and reused. This provides greater Cincinnati with world-class water at a very reasonable rate.
GCWW strives to continually improve the effectiveness of its water treatment processes. Today, a key issue facing the water utility industry is the effectiveness of using ultraviolet (UV) treatment in conjunction with chlorine and physical barriers to treat drinking water. The physical barriers include coagulation and settling, in addition to sand filtration and GAC filtration. Questions regarding the vulnerability of the Ohio River watershed to contamination led the utility to initiate this in-depth study of ultraviolet (UV) disinfection. UV disinfection systems consist of a series of UV lamps in a reactor. UV light impacts microbes that pass through the reactor, inactivating a portion of them. Microbial inactivation is dependent on the UV dose delivered by the reactor.
The UV study focused on reducing waterborne disease caused by chlorine-resistant protozoan including Cryptosporidium. The study included a wide range of organisms that cause human illness, including some not looked at before in terms of UV effectiveness. The study determined that, under certain conditions, using UV in combination with chlorine effectively inactivated all microbial contaminants identified in the study. This study is expected to assist not just GCWW, but other water utility managers and design engineers make informed decisions about the criteria, operation and effectiveness of UV disinfection systems when used in combination with other treatment processes. GCWW is currently reviewing a conceptual design to evaluate various issues related to adding UV to the water treatment process.
The American Academy of Environmental Engineers is a specialty certification board and professional society for environmental engineers. The purpose of their Excellence in Environmental Engineering competition is to recognize and promote quality environmental engineering.
The American Council of Engineering Companies of Ohio is a chapter of the national organization devoted exclusively to the business and advocacy interests of engineering companies.
