Media Corner

For Immediate Release
December 29, 2004

Ground Breaking Effort to Deliver Safe Drinking Water to Residents

WHITTIER, CA - With the construction of the Central Basin Treatment Plant currently underway, the much-anticipated Water Quality Protection Plan (WQPP) is expected to begin operation in February 2004. The completion of the treatment facility marks the final stage of the WQPP which will prevent the spread of the contamination plume from the San Gabriel Valley into the local groundwater supplies and ensure high-quality drinking water to residents in Central Basin.

The $10 million project, federally funded by the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), consists of two extraction wells designed to pump out the contaminated water and collection pipelines that transport the water to a central treatment facility where the water is purified. The cleaned water will then be distributed via City of Whittier's potable (drinking) water distribution systems.

Central Basin worked with the cities of Whittier, Santa Fe Springs, Pico Rivera, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the California Department of Health Services to coordinate the distribution of the treated groundwater to purveyors.

In the early eighties, contaminants were detected in the San Gabriel Valley groundwater supply. Based on the contamination level, the EPA declared the area as a superfund site (a highly contaminated area). Eventually, the contamination plume began traveling south through the Whittier Narrows towards Central Basin area, threatening the local groundwater supplies. To prevent the spread, the District developed a plan for containment - the WQPP.

Central Basin is a public agency that wholesales imported water to cities, mutual water companies, investor-owned utilities, and private companies in southeast Los Angeles County, serving a population of over 1.5 million. In addition, Central Basin supplies the region with recycled water for municipal, commercial and industrial uses. Formed in 1952, Central Basin is committed to ensuring a safe and reliable water supply for the region.