Municipal Water Treatment in Sewanee
 

Sewanee's drinking water comes from two rain-fed reservoirs (Lake Jackson and Lake O’Donnell). Since the 1970’s the Sewanee Utility District (SUD) has owned and operated the drinking water treatment plant and distribution system, which currently serves 1200 customers. 

Until 2011, Sewanee’s water was treated at a plant that used a conventional sand filtration system to process incoming water. Today, a new water treatment plant utilizes membrane systems that produce a higher degree of filtration. Switching to membrane filtration has resulted in a 30 percent reduction in disinfection by-products that form during pre-filtration treatment.

Sewanee's drinking water meets all of the US Environmental Protection Agency's health standards. The SUD routinely tests the water they provide to the Sewanee community to guarantee its safe use. In fact, they conduct tests for over 80 contaminants that may be present in drinking water. Only 11 of these have been detected, all of them at safe levels. 

To learn more, please contact the Sewanee Utility District.