DEKALB COUNTY (GA) $152
MILLION WATER PLANT CONSTRUCTION NEARS BEGINNING, 8/1/02
It is believed to be the most
expensive project in the 176-year history of DeKalb County government. If it is
successful, most residents never will notice the benefits of the work.
Within the next 30 days, the county
hopes to start construction of its Scott Candler Water
Filter plant, a $152 million project
officials hope will increase the amount of drinking water treated each day and
provide a more effective water cleansing process. "We're trying to provide
the most current treatment levels possible," said Margaret Howse, deputy
director of operations for DeKalb's water and sewer department. The project,
scheduled to be completed by 2005, is being paid for by bond sales.
DeKalb County gets its water from
the Chattahoochee River. For years, water has been pumped from the river to two
reservoirs at the Scott Candler plant, located off Winters Chapel Road in
Doraville. A third reservoir was built in May. The current plant, which will be converted into office space and a maintenance
area, handles an average of 87 million gallons of water a day. It can treat up
to 128 million gallons a day. The new plant will be equipped with advanced
technology that will enable treatment of between 150 million and 200 million
gallons a day.
County officials began preliminary
engineering studies for the plant in 1994. The design phase began in 1997. In
1999 and 2001, the county sold bonds to pay for its construction.
In June, county commissioners agreed to hire Archer Western Contractors, an
Atlanta-based company, to build the plant. The company has a good track record
overall in metro Atlanta, but it's had some problems, too.
Archer Western began $36 million of
improvements at Atlanta's Hemphill Water Treatment Plant in 1994. Construction
fell behind schedule on the project, and the city found some structural
problems. In 1999, the company agreed to pay Atlanta $4 million to fix the
problems. The new DeKalb plant is part of a multifaceted effort to improve the
county's water
treatment system. The county is planning to expand
two reservoirs on the site to hold more water.
County officials also want to
replace the station that pumps the water from the Chattahoochee to the reservoirs. Water
and sewer department officials are looking for an engineering firm to design
the project. County officials said design and construction will take at least
three years. The current cost estimate is $35 million.
The current water treatment plant
was built in 1942, and at age 60, it is not well-equipped to treat organisms
such as giardia and cryptosporidium, which can cause temporary sickness to small
children and senior citizens. The organisms are typically caused by animal
waste seeping into the water supply.
The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency has required that DeKalb's plants be able to kill such organisms by
2005. Although county officials say the organisms are not in DeKalb's water supply,
they'd prefer not to take any chances. "If we don't do our job, there's
going to come a time when maybe that won't happen," Rick Daniel, DeKalb's
water and sewer division director, said of keeping a clean water supply.
Source: Atlanta Constitution
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