Roy Hott and helper inspecting a diversion chamber
Clarence Kuhn, Eddie Cornell and Superintendent John Gaskill installing a water line
Newly completed Sewage Plant Control Building in 1968
Water office circa 1962
New, enclosed reservoir on the left, and old, open reservoir on the right circa 1965
High service pump at the water plant
Ted Kuhn, bottom left, and John Costello (Solicitor), top, second from left and board members circa 1952
A view from inside the water plant with Aluminum Sulfate and Lime feeders
Water treatment plant circa 1935
Water filters with Chlorine feeders in the background
Sedimentation basins with the filter backwash tank on the hill
Construction of the Sewage Pumping Station circa 1966
Coal fired, steam driven high service pump
Under construction the Sewage Treatment plant circa 1966
Original pump house along the Mon River circa 1910
HISTORY OF THE BELLE VERNON WATER COMPANY
The Belle Vernon Water Company was originally chartered in 1894 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and later consolidated in 1908 which merged systems in Belle Vernon and Washington Township in Fayette County, North Belle Vernon Borough and Rostraver Township in Westmoreland County.
The original facility was constructed in 1895, transferring water from the Monongahela River to an open reservoir at Knowles Lane via an 800gpm steam-driven pumping system. In a 1913 state report, the distribution system consisted of 51,750 Line Feet with 735 metered connections. Chlorine injection facilities were added later for disinfection purposes in 1916.
A water filtration plant was constructed in 1921-22 and turned into service on June 21, 1922. The project included filter units, flocculation/ sedimentation basins, chemical feed systems and high service pumps. With modifications, the Water Treatment plant operated for 94 years, until 2016 when the Water Treatment plant was decommissioned. Presently, the Belle Vernon Municipal Authority purchases bulk water from Westmoreland County Municipal Authority to provide drinking water to its customers. The Belle Vernon Municipal Authority still maintains the water mains and services, reads and repairs meters, and provides customer service to more than 2,300 customers.
HISTORY OF THE Sewage Treatment Facility
The sewage treatment facility serves the Borough of Belle Vernon, North Belle Vernon and Washington Township which treats an average of 0.660MGD. When the facility was built and commissioned into service on October 1, 1969, it was considered state of the art. The plant was constructed in accordance with the requirements of the Pennsylvania Department of Health to comply with their Clean Streams Pollution Abatement Program. The Belle Vernon Municipal Authority financed the construction of the Water Pollution Control Plant, Sewage pumping station, as well as the Sewers and Force Mains. Total cost for the project was $1,253,927.95 in the year 1968. The treatment facility operated as an Extended Aeration Plant for 40 years with no major upgrades.
In 2008, due to accepting sewage from the community of Washington Township, the treatment facility was converted to a process called Contact Stabilization. This process allowed for increased treatment capacity utilizing the same footprint. Many advances in technology gave the ability to treat wastewater better and safer. These advances came in the form of UV disinfection, instead of chlorine gas. Another upgrade was the addition of a Centrifuge sludge handling system. This mechanism gave the ability to convert liquid sludge into usable bio-solids.
The wastewater treatment facility remains in operation today and is located along the Monongahela River in the vicinity of the interstate 70 bridge.