Austin Water and city leaders recently broke ground on a $1.5 billion expansion of the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, marking the beginning of key upgrades to critical infrastructure that will improve the treatment processes and protect the health of the Colorado River downstream of Austin. All improvements will be made while the plant remains fully operational, without interruptions, according to Austin Water.
The Walnut Creek facility continues to stand among the nation’s top-performing plants, earning the National Association of Clean Water Agencies’ Platinum Peak Performance Award. Built in 1977, when Austin’s population was just over 320,000, the plant expanded over time to meet the needs of the growing city, which is more than 1 million people. Today, it serves more than 50% of Austin and operates at a treatment capacity of 75 mgd. Through this expansion, that capacity will increase to 100 mgd.
DC Water Launches Tunnel Boring Machine for Potomac River Project
DC Water commenced excavation on its $819 million Potomac River Tunnel Project, deploying a colossal tunnel boring machine named "Mary" on a northbound route. The initial rotation of the machine's giant cutterhead represents a major milestone, transitioning the monumental infrastructure initiative from years of meticulous planning into active underground construction.
As the excavation advances, crews will progressively attach trailing support sections until the fully assembled machine reaches 700 feet in length, 21 feet in diameter and weighs 1,200 tons.
EPA Announces Grants to Help Small Communities Protect Water
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced the availability of $30 million in grant funding as part of the agency’s RealWaterTA Initiative. This newly available funding supports technical assistance and training to benefit small drinking water and wastewater systems and to help private well owners improve drinking water quality.
RealWaterTA funding helps connect small and rural drinking water and wastewater systems with services such as engineering and design expertise, operational support, workforce development and financial management. The application period for these competitive grants is now open. The funding opportunity will remain open for 30 days on grants.gov.
