The Beaufort County Water Department (BCWD) was formed in 1989. Seven districts were created in order to maximize funding sources and to phase the construction of the system. Districts One through Five are on the north side of the river and Districts Six and Seven are on the south side of the river. BCWD serves approximately 12,000 residential connections and approximately 60 commercial/industrial connections.
Water Sources & Treatment
The water for Beaufort - Northside (Districts I, II, III, IV, and V and Whichards Beach Road) is purchased by the Beaufort County Water Department from the City of Washington. This water comes from eight ground wells that have been installed into the Castle Hayne Aquifer. These wells, located 5 to 10 miles east of Washington, pump raw water to the City of Washington's Water Treatment Plant, which is located near the Douglas Cross Road Area. The water is then treated to remove odor, iron, manganese, and hardness by the City of Washington Public Works Department. It is then pumped by BCWD to the various water towers across the County. During the pumping process BCWD adds ammonia. This ammonia combines with the chlorine, added by the City of Washington, to make chloramines, which is a type of disinfectant.
The water for Beaufort - Southside (Districts VI and VII) comes from six ground wells that have been installed into the Castle Hayne and Pee Dee Aquifers. These wells are located along Highway 33 East, 5 to 10 miles east of Chocowinity and along Old Sandhill Road. These wells pump raw water to two water treatment plants, which are also located along Highway 33 East and Old Sandhill Road. At the treatment plants, the water is treated to remove odor, iron, manganese, and hardness. Chlorine and ammonia combine to form chloramines, a type of disinfectant. The treated water is stored in three elevated storage tanks and one ground storage tank.
A chloramine residual is maintained throughout the distribution system in order to prevent bacterial growth.
