EPA Region 10 DWSRF WATERS Awards
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Well-Planned
Affordable
Transferable
Efficient
Resilient
Sustainable

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2018
WATERS
Award
Winners
Alaska
. College Utilities Corporation
Idaho
•	CityofAshton
. City of Weston
Washington
•	City of Bellingham
. City of Olympia
. City of Pasco
About The WATERS Awards
Recognizing the most innovative and effective DWSRF
projects.
Since the first Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
(DWSRF) loan was signed back in 1997, borrowers have
utilized this program to fund projects that deliver a public
health benefit as well as meet other related goals. The
EPA Region 10 WATERS award program seeks to recog-
nize exceptional DWSRF projects. These projects are
nominated by state DWSRF staff and are ones that help
water systems maintain or return to compliance with the
Safe Drinking Water Act, as well as achieve one or more
elements of the WATERS award. Those elements include
projects that: are Well-planned, address Affordability is-
sues, include innovative ideas or technology that is Trans-
ferable to other communities, provide benefits for water or
energy Efficiency, or incorporate Resiliency and/or Sus-
tainability attributes.
About the Region 10 DWSRF Program
Over the past 21 years, the Region 10 DWSRF pro-
gram has been capitalized at a total of $1.2 billion. To
date, using those funds, along with state match, repay-
ments and interest earnings, Region 10 states have pro-
vided $1.9 billion in DWSRF loans.
Region 10 DWSRF Loans (1997-2018)
Alaska
Idaho
¦ Oregon
Washington

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About the DWSRF Program
The DWSRF program was created
by the 1996 Amendments to
SDWA. The first capitalization
grants were awarded to states in
1997. To date, approximately $20
billion in DWSRF grant funds have
been awarded nationwide. Using
those funds, along with state
match, repayments and interest
earnings, states have provided $38
billion worth of DWSRF loans.
These loans have funded approxi-
mately 14,800 projects, helping to
provide clean and safe drinking wa-
ter to an estimated 879 million resi
dents.
College Utilities Corporation, Chena Marina Expansion Project
The College Utilities Corporation (CUC) is a privately owned public
water system that provides water to customers outside the city limits of
Fairbanks, Alaska. CUC initiated the Chena Marina Expansion Project
in order to bring clean drinking water to nearly 300 residential lots in
this area. Many of these residents rely on private wells that are failing
or producing poor quality water. Other residents have to haul water to
their homes. To address this situation CUC developed a "rural residen-
tial" model for construction of water mains to more affordably provide
service to rural areas. Instead of the typical 6-inch cast iron water
mains, CUC installed smaller high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipes.
This piping costs approximately 75% less than cast iron, and installation
is easier and cheaper. This project, which installed more than 46,000
feet of 4 inch and 6 inch transmission line, was financed with a
$3,075,175 DWSRF loan.

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City of Ashton, Water System Upgrade Project
The public water system in the City of Ashton, Idaho serves approximately 1,100 people and is located in
Idaho's Fremont county. The project, which was funded by a $3.6 million DWSRF loan, added an ion ex-
change process to address high nitrate levels, replaced malfunctioning water meters with automated meters to
conserve water and save on treatment and pumping costs, installed a variable frequency drive to optimize en-
ergy use, and replaced 12,000 feet of leaking distribution piping. The project provided a public health benefit
of achieving compliance with nitrate rules, as well as annual savings of approximately 174,000kWh of energy
and nearly 22 million gallons of water. These savings add up to more than $35,000 per year due to the in-
creased water and energy efficiency. The project was made more affordable by inclusion of $436,000 in prin-
cipal forgiveness, as well as a 30 year loan term and a 0% interest rate.
City of Weston, Water Storage and Transmission Upgrade Project
The City of Weston, Idaho, is using a
$2.2 million DWSRF loan to fund a water
system upgrade project. After evaluating
multiple alternatives to reduce operational
costs and improve system capacity, the
City seized the opportunity to eliminate
the existing booster pump station by
building a new storage tank on a hill to
the north of the existing tanks. The in-
creased elevation of the new tank, coupled
with a new transmission line, will provide
sufficient hydraulic head without the use
of the booster pump station. The reduc-
tion in pumping will save the City an esti-
mated $500,000 in electrical charges over
the life of the loan. In addition to this
significant savings due to improved ener-
gy efficiency, the project was made more
affordable by $293,000 in principal for-
giveness, as well as a 30 year loan term
and a 1.75% interest rate.

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City of Bellingham, Dissolved Air Flotation
(DAF) Treatment and On-Site Hypochlorite
Generation Project
In summer of 2009, the City of Bellingham
experienced filter clogging and reduced filter run
times as a result of algae in Lake Whatcom, the
City's surface water supply source. The reduced
filter run times resulted in less treated water be-
ing produced and more treated water needed to
backwash the filters. This mode of operation is
expensive and diminishes the City's treated water
supply for consumption. The City implements a
robust watershed protection plan in collaboration
with Whatcom County, Lake Whatcom Water
and Sewer District, and homeowners in the wa-
tershed to reduce nutrient loading to Lake What-
com. However, algae has continued to bloom
and is expected to increase in intensity in the fu-
ture based on years of quarterly testing in the
lake. The City evaluated a number of alternatives
to address high summer suspended organic loads
and selected dissolved air flotation given its supe-
rior ability to mitigate the filter-clogging algae.
Dissolved air flotation was pilot tested and
proved to be very effective at removing algae,
resulting in substantially increased filter run
times and more predictable source water quality.
Current filter run times in the summer are ap-
proximately 12 hours but are anticipated to be as
high as 40 hours once dissolved air flotation is
placed into service. Dissolved air flotation had
the added benefit of reducing organic loads and
minimizing the formation of disinfection byprod-
ucts by up to 25 percent.
In addition to dissolved air flotation treatment,
the City converted the existing gas chlorination
system to on-site hypochlorite generation for
safety reasons and updated its treatment plant
controls to accommodate the new processes.
The City received a DWSRF loan for approxi-
mately $12 million to complete this project at
1.5% interest for a 20-year term. The City is also
installing solar panels (funded by a grant from
Northwest Clean Air Agency) to off-set energy
demands of the dissolved air flotation process.
The City serves approximately 90,000 people.

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City of Olympia, McAllister Well Field Corrosion Control Facility Project
In 2014, the City of Olympia, Washington's state capitol, switched from an unfiltered surface water source
to the McAllister Well Field, which produces over 10,000 gallons of ground water per minute and provides
about 80 percent of the city's drinking water. To comply with the Lead and Copper Rule, the city was required
to install corrosion control on the new wells. The well water has a rather low natural pH of 6.5, which can
cause lead and copper to leach from metallic pipes in the distribution system. Olympia already had aeration
towers on two other permanent groundwater sources in the system. So the city did a pilot study to determine
whether packed tower aeration treatment would increase the pH of the McAllister well water to 7.5 or greater.
The pilot study showed the towers would raise the pH to about 7.6.
Using a $4.1 million DWSRF construction loan to complete the project, Olympia constructed three towers;
each filled with plastic spheres. Air blown into the towers lowers the pH of the water by removing carbon di-
oxide. They constructed the facility to allow construction of a fourth tower when needed to meet future de-
mands. The new treatment plant went into service in April 2018 and pH measured throughout the distribution
system is about 7,7. The city notified all customers about the change in pH.
City of Olympia is now able to provide safe and reliable drinking water with a pH that is not corrosive, min-
imizing the potential of lead or copper to leach into the drinking water.

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City of Pasco, Columbia River Water Supply Project
In 2015, the City of Pasco, which serves approximately 70,000 people, received a DWSRF loan to replace
an existing intake on the Columbia River. The City treats water from the Columbia River at their membrane
filtration plant adjacent to the river. The existing intake was in need of replacement to address seasonal intake
clogging due to milfoil. Milfoil is an invasive species that exists throughout the Columbia River system and
has clogged recreational areas and intakes along the river. To address the clogging issue, the 6 million gallons
per day (MGD) treatment plant is temporarily shut down and a professional diver is hired to physically remove
the milfoil from the intake. This mode of operation is time intensive, costly, and dangerous due to in-water
work by the diver. The City elected to install a new intake with a mechanical cleaning system, which elimi-
nates the need for in-water work. A 30-foot diameter, 85 feet deep caisson was constructed first near the exist-
ing river intake. The new intake was installed via microtunnelling from the caisson to the river. Two new
pumps reside on top of the caisson slab, each with a capacity of 5.5 MGD to match the current water treatment
plant rating and provide redundancy. In addition, the new pumps and controls are located in a safer location
than existing intake pumps and are now securely housed in an enclosed, locked structure. The pump house has
the ability to expand for additional pumps to meet the City's future needs. The new intake also has been sized
to match the treatment plant capacity and is equipped with proper fish screens. The existing intake will remain
in service to be used by City of Pasco Irrigation District and if needed, can be used as a back-up to serve the
water treatment plant.
The City received a DWSRF construction loan for approximately $6.8 million to complete this project at
1.5% interest for a 20-year term.

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