"The Ward Three Neighborhood Association, in cooperation with Ward 3 City Councilor Bob Reckman, has scheduled a public tour of the City's Wastewater Treatment Plant and Flood Control Building on Saturday, March 29 at 10 AM. The plant is located on Hockanum Road. Take the first driveway on the right after you go under the railroad trestle. The tour will be led by Superintendent George Brehm. This facility is well worth seeing, especially the wonderful old flood control building that pumps every year to keep the lowest areas in the City from flooding.
There will be a tour of the City's brand new $24 million Water Treatment Plant on Saturday, May 3, at 10 AM. This plant was opened in late January and provides the City with water that is carefully filtered and therefore requires far less chlorination. The Water Treatment Plant is located on Mountain St. in Haydenville/Williamsburg. Please take the first driveway on the left once you see the Mountain St. reservoir on your right. This tour will be conducted by Alex Roseweir, the chief operator. Parking is limited, so carpooling is encouraged. If you have any questions, please call Councilor Reckman at 413-695-0281."
Friday, March 14, 2008
Tours of Water and Sewer Plants
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
The DPW on Water
Where Does it Come From,
and Where Does it Go?
Ned Huntley, Head of the Department of Public Works for the City of Northampton, and Dave Sparks, head of the Water Division of the the DPW, answer lots of questions about water filtration ("making water" in the parlance of the profession), delivery, wastewater treatment, and drainage. Why did Northampton have to build a $28 million water filtration plant? How does this plant, which is capable of delivering 6.5 millions of gallons a day, work? Do we have enough water to meet our future needs? How do we protect our supply? Are the delivery pipes in good condition? Is the plant run by City employees, or are we outsourcing its operation?
Is stormwater--a notorious non-point source of pollution to environmental planners--adequately monitored and managed? And wastewater--how exactly is sewerage treated? Does it get dumped into the Connecticut? How clean is it at that point? What do we do with the sludge? Is the entire water delivery and disposal system energy-intensive?
Oh...both Ned Huntley and I want that job where you get to drive around in an orange DPW truck and patrol watershed land in Williamsburg. Too bad; I'll bet he's a bit more qualified than I am.
Watch as a slide show/video, or download the mp3 using the direct link:
northampton_water.mp3
