Our Mission
The Council Bluffs Water Works is committed to providing the best possible service while supplying adequate quantities of high quality tap water to meet all the domestic, industrial and fire protection needs of our customers and community.
General Description of System Operations
The water systems main source of water is the Missouri River. Four low service pumps are located at the intake pump station. #1 pump is rated at 12.5 million gallons per day (MGD) and is a dual drive pump (electric or gas engine) #2 pump is rated at 5.5 MGD. #3 pump is a variable speed with a maximum capacity of 9.0 MGD. #4 pump is also variable speed with a maximum capacity of 12.5 MGD. Any single pump can be run from a standby generator if commercial power fails.
The secondary source of water is the Missouri River Alluvium. Two wells at a depth of 150 feet have a capacity of 4.5 MGD each.
Traveling screens at the Intake Pump Station remove large debris before it is pumped to twin preliminary settling basins where the sand and heavy silt settle out. Polyelectrolytes are added when necessary to enhance the settling process. Well water is blended with the cold river water in the winter to minimize icing problems within the basins. Water then flows by gravity through the remaining treatment steps.
There are two independent treatment trains at the purification plant. Typically, the plant operates in a split treatment mode where lime is added to approximately 70% of the water to elevate the pH sufficiently to precipitate magnesium and calcium ions. This softened water is blended with un-softened water as needed to adjust the pH and hardness of the water. Soda Ash and Ferric Sulfate are added as required to complete the coagulation and softening process. A series of mixers and flocculators ensure a complete chemical reaction prior to the clarification basins. Solids are recycled to the mixers as a catalyst for the chemical reactions.
Water then flows to 8 gravity multi-media filters. Each filter has a rated capacity of 3.0 MGD. The filters remove any remaining particles. The filters have a granular activated carbon cap that remove dissolved organic compounds and tasted and odor causing compounds by adsorption.
Chlorine is added as a disinfectant before and after the filters. Fluoride is added as a prophylaxis. The water then flows through two 1.5 million gallon baffled clearwells to ensure inactivation of microorganisms. Ammonia is then added to convert the chlorine to chloramines to stabilize the chlorine residual and control disinfection by-products.
There are four high service pumps that deliver water to the City. Two of the pumps have a capacity of 10 MGD, one is 7.5 MGD and the smallest is 6 MGD. Pumps can be run in any combination to meet demand. Typical plant discharge pressure is 90 – 100 pounds per square inch.
A 500 kW and 100 kW generators provide emergency back up power to the plant in case of commercial power failure.
The distribution system has three pressure zones. The first zone is the flat (western and southern) sections of the city and is served by three 2 million gallon reservoirs. Two of the reservoirs are located downtown and one is located in the southeastern part of the city.
Four booster pump stations and 4 elevated storage tanks with a combined capacity of 1.2 million gallons serve the second pressure zone (bluffs). Lincoln Pump Station has three pumps rated at 600, 750 and 750 gallons per minute (gpm), one is dual drive (electric or gas). Lincoln Pump Station delivers water to the northern section of the City and pumps to a 500,000 gallon elevated tank at Buena Vista Circle and a 200,000 gallon elevated tank at Simms Avenue. Glen Pump Station has three pumps rated at 1500, 800 and 2500 gpm, the largest being a dual drive. This booster pump station delivers to the eastern section of the city and pumps to a 200,000 gallon elevated tank at Memorial Park and a 300,000 gallon tank on Greenview Drive. The Valley View Pump Station has two pumps rated at 750 gpm and 1500 gpm. A gas fired generator provides emergency backup power. This new pump station supports the rapidly growing eastern sections of the city. Oak Street Pump Station has three pumps rated at 400, 700 and 700 gpm, one is a dual drive. This pump station supports both the northern and eastern sections of the bluffs.
A third pressure zone of the distribution system serves the eastern portions of the system. The Airport/Bent Tree pump station has three variable speed pumps each with a maximum capacity of 600 gallons per minute and pump to a 400,000 gallon elevated tank on Highway 6. A gas fired generator provides emergency back up power.
A Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition System monitors all pump station and tank operation from the Water Treatment Plant located on North 25th Street.