Portland Water District

Portland Water District
IndustryWater industry
Founded1862 (162 years ago) (1862)
Headquarters225 Douglass Street, Portland, Maine, U.S.
Area served
Southern Maine
Key people
Seth Garrison (general manager)
Number of employees
186
Websitewww.pwd.org

Portland Water District (PWD) is a publicly-owned water company based Portland, Maine, United States. It was established, as Portland Water Company (PWC), in 1862 by a group of Portland citizens as a private company as a means to ensure continued growth. The wells which had been used up to that point were proving inadequate. Its water is sourced from Sebago Lake, Maine's second-largest lake, as it has been since 1869.[1]

In September 1869, PWC moved their office to the room above the Evening Express newspaper office on the now-demolished Plum Street.[2] (Plum Street connected Fore Street and Middle Street between Exchange Street and Union Street.)[3]

Portland Water District purchased Portland Water Company and the Standish Water and Construction Company in 1908, and initially served Portland, South Portland, Cape Elizabeth and Westbrook. It also provided water for Gorham Water Company and Falmouth Water Company. Over the next two decades, PWD began supplying water to Cumberland, Falmouth, Gorham and the islands of Casco Bay. Toward the end of the 20th century, the company expanded several times, including improving its infrastructure by constructing water-supply systems to serve Steep Falls, Standish and North Windham.[1][4]

Toward the end of the 20th century, the Clean Water Act (1972) and Safe Drinking Water Act (1974) mandated that a new disinfection plant be constructed. It was built at Sebago Lake in 1994.[1]

PWD runs the East End Treatment Plant.[5] It has also built treatment plants in Westbrook, Little Falls, Cape Elizabeth and Peaks Island.[1]

The company, which delivers an average of 21 million gallons of water each day, has 186 employees. It maintains over 5,000 hydrants, around 115 miles (185 km) of pipelines and 76 pump stations.[6] Its headquarters are at 225 Douglass Street in Portland.[7] The facility, which was designed by John Calvin Stevens and his son John Howard Stevens, opened in 1928.[8]

  1. ^ a b c d "The History of the Portland Water District". Portland Water District. February 20, 2015. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  2. ^ Portland Daily Press, September 15, 1869
  3. ^ Ledman, Paul J. (2016). Walking Through History: Portland, Maine on Foot. Next Steps Publishing. p. 12. ISBN 978-0-9728587-1-7.
  4. ^ "Portland Water District Trustees approve combined $108.7 million operating and capital budget for 2024". Press Herald. January 18, 2024. Retrieved May 24, 2024.
  5. ^ "1 million-gallon sewage spill closes Portland's East End beach and trail". Press Herald. July 26, 2018. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  6. ^ "Who We Are". Portland Water District. February 10, 2015. Retrieved May 24, 2024.
  7. ^ "Portland Water District - The Forecaster". local.theforecaster.net. Retrieved May 24, 2024.
  8. ^ "Portland Water District - Portland Water District Douglass Street Facility, Portland, ca. 1928". portlandwater.mainememory.net. Retrieved May 24, 2024.