Lake Gaston Water Treatment Plant Dedication
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Public Utilities Department

Lake Gaston Water Treatment Plant

The Next Step in Chesapeake's Water Resources

Water is essential for life, public safety and the economic health of Chesapeake. Water resource planning is one of the less visible, but very important tasks of the Department of Public Utilities. Public Utilities has been making long range plans for a new water facility for many years. Since 1987 Chesapeake has been a partner with Virginia Beach to bring the Lake Gaston water to Hampton Roads. During the design for the Lake Gaston plant the opportunity arose to buy additional raw water from Norfolk. The new plant needs no further modifications to treat this water. This contract with Norfolk will allow the City to hold Lake Gaston water in reserve until needed for future use. Together, both Norfolk and Lake Gaston water will meet the needs of our citizens until 2040.

The Lake Gaston Water Treatment Plant will treat eight million gallons a day using state of the art membrane filtration. The treated water will meet expected changes to the EPA Safe Drinking Act. When the Lake Gaston water is needed, the plant can be expanded and upgraded to treat it, also.

Besides the treatment plant, the Project includes improvements to the In-town Lakes site in Deep Creek. The site consists of former borrow pits. These lakes will act as reservoirs to store the raw water from Norfolk and/or Lake Gaston. New raw water lines will carry water from the Norfolk pipeline in the Pughsville area in Chesapeake to the plant, and then to the In-town Lakes. From the treatment plant, a new, larger water main for the treated water will be built to connect to existing water lines.

The project will cost about $66 million and be complete in 2006.

Engineers: CH2M HILL, HDR
Contractor: MID EASTERN BUILDERS, INC