Xylem provides advanced filtration systems to Californian water treatment plant

Global water technology provider Xylem has been awarded a contract to supply advanced filtration technology to a southern Californian water treatment plant.

Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s F.E. Weymouth Water Treatment Plant in the city of La Verne is retrofitting the plant with biologically active filtration and ozone.

Xylem will supply its Leopold Type XA underdrains with I.M.S 200 media retainers and Leopold dual media sand and anthracite to the plant, which treats water from the Colorado River Aqueduct and the State Project Water (SPW) California Aqueduct.

The plant was placed in service in 1941, initially with mono-media filters and a clay tile underdrain.

As the plant was expanded, concrete tee-pee underdrains were installed and all of the filters were converted to dual media filters.

“The Xylem Leopold Type XA underdrains provided us with an opportunity to remove the old underdrains and support gravel and install substantially deeper layers of sand and anthracite, without a significant impact to the plant’s existing hydraulic profile,” said Jim Kostelecky, Weymouth Plant manager.

“Based on previously conducted full scale testing, it is anticipated that the new retrofit filters will provide a far more robust filtration process, which will be in service for another 75 years or more.”

Construction on the plant is underway and phase one of the new system is due to be operational in Q1 2016.