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Water
System Data
Source of Supply
Johnston Pump Station Ozone
Treatment Facility
Standpipes SCADA
Transmission Lines Distribution
System Services
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Did
You Know That....
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The
District pumps and treats approximately 5,000,000 gallons of water
each day.
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The
water is delivered through 180 miles of pipeline ranging in size
from four to 30 inches in diameter.
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The
District supplies more than 45,000 people in the greater Bangor
area.
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The
water comes from Floods Pond in Otis, and is piped under the
Penobscot River to reach Bangor. The Penobscot River was abandoned
as a water source almost 50 years ago.
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The
District is a municipal corporation, charted by the State of Maine,
and is a separate entity from the City of Bangor. The formation of
the District was approved by voters in 1957. The only source of
revenue is money raised through water bills, public and private fire
protection, and other utility services.
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| Source
of Supply (Return
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The source of
supply for the Bangor Water District is Floods Pond in Otis. The pond
lies 15 miles east of Bangor in a rocky, rugged area which was scoured
by the retreating glaciers. The pond supplies an excellent source of
water that is clear, soft and palatable year-round. The watershed is an
area of about eight square miles. The estimated dependable yield of
Floods Pond is about 8.0 million gallons per day. In order to protect
the source of water, the District originally acquired a strip of land
200 feet wide around the periphery of Floods Pond and Burnt Pond, and in
recent years has purchased several thousand additional acres of land in
the watershed area to control activities which could impact water
quality.
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| Johnston
Pump Station (Return
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Johnston Pump
Station, located on the shores of Floods Pond, is named after Donald
Johnston, a former District superintendent. The station has two intake
pipes which are 36 inches in diameter. One is in approximately 13.5 feet
of water, and the second is in about 23.5 feet of water. Four vertical
well-type electrically driven 150 hp pumps are on site, each capable of
pumping five million gallons per day. From 1957 to 1995, raw water was
treated at this pump station.
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| Butler
Ozone Water Treatment Facility
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Beginning
in 1995, chemical dosing was moved to the Butler Ozone Treatment Facility
located about a mile from the original station. The water is treated with
ozone and chloramines for disinfection, soda ash for pH adjustment, and
fluoride for dental health. The pond has a natural fluoride content of
about 0.20 ppm.
The
Butler facility was named for Paul G. Butler of Bangor, who worked a total
of 33 years for the City Water Department which then became the Bangor
Water District. In addition to serving as chemist and assistant
superintendent, Butler was responsible for much of the testing that
resulted in Floods Pond being chosen as the source of supply.
Both
plants have auxiliary generators to ensure lights, heat and pumping
facilities during a power failure. The ozone facility is manned by
operators 24 hours a day, seven days a week who control water pumpage and
treatment and monitor other District storage and pump facilities through a
computer network. |
| Pump
Stations and Standpipes
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Three
pump stations in Bangor are used to control water flow. These are: Griffin
Road, built in 1987; Perry Road, built in 1988; and Bangor International
Airport, built in 1943. The latter underwent extensive renovations in
1994, and was named in honor of Harold Crane of Bangor, a retired 43-year
employee and former service truck supervisor.
Water
for emergency purposes is stored in seven
standpipes, totaling 15,850,000 gallons. These are:
Thomas
Hill--which holds l,750,000 gallons and is a riveted
wrought iron tank with a wood jacket. It is located on Thomas Hill, rises
50 feet, and is 75 feet in diameter. The tank, built in 1897, is the
District's oldest standpipe. It is a national historic landmark as
designated by the Register of Historic Places and the Maine Historic
Preservation Commission. It is also designated an American Water Landmark
by the American Water Works Association. The lights which illuminate the
top at night resemble a queen's crown, in keeping with Bangor being known
as the "Queen City."
Bomarc--a
welded steel tank located at the former Bomarc base which holds l,500,000
gallons. This is the District's newest standpipe, constructed in 1986.
Essex
Street--two steel tanks, the oldest built in 1933 and
holding 2,000,000 gallons, and the other built in 1958 and holding
4,000,000 gallons. One is 47 feet high and 85 feet in diameter, the other
is 48 feet high and 120 feet in diameter.
Hammond
Street--a steel welded tank holding 5,000,000 gallons.
It stands 74 feet high and is 110 feet in diameter. It was built in 1963.
Bangor
International Airport--a l,000,000 gallon standpipe
which stands 100 feet high. It was built in 1944, and is painted in an
orange-and-white checkerboard fashion due to its proximity to runways.
Hermon
–- the District’s newest standpipe, built in 1999.
Holding 600,000 gallons, the standpipe is located on the Coldbrook
Road in Hermon and was constructed as part of the Hermon service area
expansion. |
| SCADA
System (Return
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Operation
of the pump station and standpipes, chemical dosing, and monitoring
equipment are supported by a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition
system (SCADA) computer. The computer is monitored from the engineering
department on State Street in Bangor and at the ozone plant. This SCADA
system helps operate all BWD transmission and distribution facilities, and
is designed to continue operating in case of power loss. The SCADA system
utilizes telephone telemetry to communicate with the 14 remote sites which
it monitors and operates on a continuous basis. In the event that all
communications are lost, there is a small computer at each pump station
designed to allow continued operation. Many other functions such as
intrusion alarms, temperature control, etc. are monitored by the SCADA
system. The system is capable of monitoring up to 99 sites, thus giving
the District expansion capabilities in the future.
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| Transmission
Lines (Return
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The
transmission facilities include a 30-inch reinforced pre- stressed
concrete pipeline from Floods Pond to the Penobscot River. The main is
located along the northerly side of Burnt, Little Burnt, and Snowshoe
ponds, and then runs westerly to East Eddington. A 5.5-mile road owned by
the District runs over the transmission line to the intersection with Rt.
9, at which point the line then runs along the northern edge of Rt. 9. At
the east bank of the Penobscot River at Eddington Bend, the transmission
line splits into two 24-inch pre-stressed reinforced concrete mains which
pass under the river.
On
the west bank of the river in Veazie, the two lines rejoin and form a
single 30-inch main which runs to a control valve facility near Bangor
Hydro-Electric's Graham Station, and then out Mount Hope Avenue and into
the City. |
| Services
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There
are approximately 10,300 services (direct water connections) which provide
service to approximately 9900 domestic accounts and 400 fire protection
services. Domestic water customers are charged based on the amount of
water used and measured. Fire protection is provided through 1071 public
hydrants and 170 private hydrants.
The
District also provides water directly to customers in Clifton, Eddington,
and parts of Hermon, Orrington, Veazie and Hampden, and to the Hampden
Water District.
The
water provided meets all of the maximum contaminant level requirements of
the Safe Drinking Water Act. The District monitors the water quality for
bacteriological contamination each working day in its own certified
laboratory to ensure its purity. |
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Last modified:
January 18, 2008
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