Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County board members have approved more than $5.5 million in improvement projects that officials said will enhance and protect the region's water supply.
In an effort to bolster the water supply in the central part of Westmoreland County, the authority will build storage tanks in Hempfield that will hold up to 3 million gallons of water.
Meanwhile, a new, upgraded transmission line will be installed in New Stanton to replace century-old pipes.
The water tanks will augment an existing tank in Hempfield. Authority members authorized payment of more than $2.7 million for a 2-million-gallon tank for the east Greensburg area and a 1-million-gallon tank to serve the New Alexandria and Crabtree service district.
Construction of the tanks is expected to start early next year.
"They will be strategically located to feed water in the Greensburg area," Kerr said.
The new tanks will enhance the authority's ability to store more water and reinforce the current system should there be service interruptions along the transmission lines.
Because there had been only one tank in that area of the county, Kerr said repairs proved difficult because water service had to be halted. The additional tanks will enable water service to continue even if repairs are needed.
The project includes building a booster pumping station with a reverse flow setting that will enable the authority to supplement service to multiple parts of the service area during peak demand periods or an emergency situation.
Authority members approved a $2.8 million project to replace 1.3 miles of 100-year-old pipeline through New Stanton.
The pipeline repairs are part of a four-phase project to upgrade the aging transmission lines throughout the central part of the county. The fourth phase, expected to be completed next year, will replace 2.5 miles of water lines from Youngwood to South Greensburg.
The costs for the fourth phase will be set later this year.
Jim Ray, assistant authority manager, said work on the New Stanton project is expected to begin in March and be completed next summer.
The authority has replaced about 4.5 miles of old water lines. In 2005, the authority borrowed more than $57 million to pay for capital improvement projects, including the replacement of the century-old transmission lines and construction of new water tanks.
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