Pennsylvania American making upgrades to Elrama water plant
Pennsylvania American Water is completing upgrades costing more than $11 million at its E.H. Aldrich Water Treatment Plant in the Washington County community of Elrama.
The company says the upgrades will strengthen “drinking water reliability, efficiency, and safety,” and will affect about 527,000 customers in Washington and Allegheny counties, according to a news release.
About $8 million is being allocated for upgrades of the treatment plant’s raw water intake and pump station. These upgrades became necessary, according to Pennsylvania American Water, as a result of water levels in the Monongahela River dropping by three to five feet when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers removed the nearby Monongahela River Locks and Dam No. 3 in 2024.
Lower-than-expected river levels increased silt and debris at the plant’s intake, causing wear and reducing the efficiency of intake screens and pumps. Construction on the intake project started in September.
In addition to intake upgrades, Pennsylvania American Water recently completed a $3 million safety improvement project at the plant, which was built in 1960 and treats an average of 32 million gallons of water per day and produces up to 50 million gallons of water per day.