Belmont Raw Water Pump Station Upgrades and Expansion

Overview

This project upgrades the Belmont Raw Water Pump Station. This pump station sends unfiltered water from the Schuylkill River to the Belmont Water Treatment Plant. There, the water is cleaned and made safe for the public before being distributed throughout the city. The pump station includes essential equipment – pumps, pipes, and electrical systems – that keep clean water flowing.

The pump station was built in 1901. Since then, it has had several smaller upgrades to maintain its equipment. Yet, the aging equipment is reaching the end of its useful life. This project modernizes the pump station with new equipment and technology. Additionally, the pump station is next to the Schuylkill River in an area prone to flooding. The upgrades will lower the risk of flooding at the pump station. Keeping this essential equipment running keeps drinking water flowing to Philadelphians.

Key improvements include but are not limited to:

• Upgrading equipment to increase the amount of water the pump station can pump
• Lower the risk of flooding at the pump station property
• Replace aging infrastructure to improve reliability
• Add redundancy so that if one part fails, other parts can continue to provide water to the Belmont Water Treatment Plant

These upgrades support our commitment to providing safe and reliable drinking water to Philadelphians.

Why we’re doing this project:

This pump station has provided water to the Belmont Water Treatment Plant for over 100 years. These upgrades improve water service reliability. They increase the amount of water the pump station can pump and lower the risk of flooding at the pump station. This makes the pump station more resilient for the future.