MyReporter: What's the status of Brunswick County's reverse-osmosis plant?
Brunswick County is moving closer to completing upgrades to its Northwest Water Treatment Plant.
The project aims to expand the plant’s capacity and add a low-pressure reverse-osmosis system, which has proven to be effective at removing natural and manmade contaminants, including polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), from the county’s drinking water.
A StarNews investigation brought the presence of these chemicals to light in June 2017. Since then, local government agencies have been working to make upgrades to their water systems to eliminate these PFAs compounds, known as “forever chemicals,” from the water supply.
Cape Fear Public Utility Authority, the primary water provider in the Wilmington area, and H2GO which provides water to residents in northern Brunswick County, have already installed filtration systems, and work on a reverse-osmosis system is currently under way in Brunswick County. However, it will be a bit longer before it’s complete. Here’s the latest on the upgrades.
How does reverse-osmosis work?
Reverse-osmosis filters water through a semi-permeable membrane. The membrane includes small holes that allow water molecules to pass through. Other substances—such as the larger PFAs compounds and contaminants—are trapped and filtered out of the water during the process.
What is the current status of the plant?
According to Brunswick County spokeswoman Meagan Kascsak, the Northwest Water Treatment Plant expansion and low-pressure reverse-osmosis upgrade project is about 74 percent complete. In an email, Kascsak said the design was completed in fall 2019, and construction began in summer 2020.
What’s the estimated cost of the project?
Kascsak said the Series 2020 Enterprise System Revenue Bonds for the project were issued at $167.3 million, with $158.7 million of that for the expansion and reverse-osmosis system. The remaining $8.6 million was for the concentrate pipelines.
When is it expected to be completed?
Currently, the project is slated for completion in late 2024.
Do you have a question about the Cape Fear region? Send us an email at myreporter@starnewsonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: What's the status of Brunswick's reverse-osmosis plant?
