Water System Additional Info.


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WATER SYSTEM ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The City of Westminster owns and operates the community water system serving the City and areas beyond the corporate limits. The existing and planned service area is located in central Carroll County and covers approximately 8,097 acres.

The water system, which dates back to 1898, was purchased by the City of Westminster in 1964 from the Maryland Water Works Company. The City’s water system is actually two systems: The main system and the Wakefield Water System.

A major source of water is Cranberry Branch, a tributary of the West Branch of the Patapsco River. A small reservoir is located north of Lucabaugh Mill Road. From that point, a 30-inch transmission line runs for approximately 7,500 feet along Cranberry Branch to the water treatment plant in Cranberry.

In the same vicinity, the City also extracts surface water from the West Branch of the Patapsco, also known as Hull Creek. A small impoundment and an infiltration gallery are located in Bennett Cerf Park and a 14 to 16-inch transmission line allows for gravity flow to the treatment plant at Cranberry. The City has an appropriation permit to withdraw 2.0 MGD from these two sources combined.

The City also obtains water from a variety of groundwater production wells. The City presently has ten production wells on-line, with one more well in the design and construction process. In addition, the City is undertaking efforts to construct a pipeline from the Medford Quarry that will supplement the City's water supply in times of drought.

The City’s Water Treatment Plant was described above. The system also operates two water booster pumping stations. The water booster pumping stations boost water pressure in areas when low water pressure exists.

The City operates a raw water reservoir with a capacity of 121.8 mgd. A transmission line from the intake to the treatment plant connects the reservoir to the treatment plant. The water in the reservoir is used either when conditions prevent direct withdrawal from the stream or to supplement low stream flow.

Treated water is pumped to, and stored in:

Clear water reservoir, with a capacity of 1.0 MGD
1.5 - MGD stand-pipe
0.5 - MGD elevated water tank
2.0 – MGD high zone stand-pipe

The Wakefield Valley satellite system has a 2-million-gallon stand-pipe.