The final phase of the Fairfield, Calif., Waterman Water Treatment Plant project, which began construction in March 2006, is now more 70% complete, with a target completion date of September 2009. The $67-million project will modernize the plant and expand water treatment capacity from 16 to 30 millions gal per day. The upgrade is designed to meet the water needs of the city's growing residential and business populations, and provide a state-of-the-art treatment plant for service well into the 21st century.
"Planning for adequate water supplies and water treatment capacity has been a strong focus in Fairfield for decades," said Sean Quinn, Fairfield city manager. "Our businesses and residents truly benefit from the quality and reliability of water provided by the city."
Fairfield's ample water supply is due to water rights obtained in the 1950s to Lake Berryessa, part of the federal Solano Project, and other water sources. The city also gets a significant amount of its water supply from the Sacramento River.
Kiewit Pacific Co., a subsidiary of Kiewit Corporation, is the contractor on the Waterman Water Treatment Plant project. Throughout the construction process, which involved partial and complete demolition and replacement of some plant facilities, the plant continued to operate with minimal shutdowns.
In addition to increased capacity, project features include:
• Utilization of the Actiflo high-rate sedimentation process to change the way the plant cleans up the water, improving pretreatment capacity, microbial protection and water quality and reliability;
• Modernization of chemical handling by constructing a building solely dedicated to storage and pumping of chemicals;
• Rehabilitating existing filters to modern standards; and
• Design with future plant expansion in mind.
The Waterman Water Treatment plant is located in northwest Fairfield. It provides water for Fairfield and, on request, to neighboring Suisun City and the Vallejo Lakes area. Water from Lake Berryessa reservoir, located 25 miles away, arrives at the plant through the Putah South Canal.
Currently the Waterman plant can treat up to 15 to 16 million gal per day. Fairfield has another water treatment plant, the North Bay Regional Water Treatment Plant near Travis Air Force Base, which can provide up to another 27 million gal per day for the city.
