Tulsa Celebrates National Drinking Water Week May 7-13

5/8/2017

The City of Tulsa is participating in National Drinking Water Week May 7-13 to increase awareness with area residents about the importance of quality drinking water in our daily lives.

“It’s so easy to take good water for granted that people forget how big a part reliable water plays in our lives and in the essential services we all rely on,” said Clayton Edwards, Water & Sewer Director. “Tulsa has award-winning, high quality drinking water that residents can rightfully be proud of.” 

To celebrate Drinking Water Week, representatives of Tulsa’s Water & Sewer Department will take the City of Tulsa’s 20-foot water trailer on a public education “tour,” visiting three parks on Thursday, May 11. The water trailer will provide samples of Tulsa’s award-winning water and information on how water consumers can understand and appreciate their water.

The tour will start at 8 a.m. at the River Parks plaza, 41^st Street and Riverside Drive. After River Parks plaza, the trailer also will visit Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness Area, 6850 S. Elwood Ave., and Mohawk Park, 5701 E. 36^th St. North.

The Tulsa water trailer has a 600-gallon water reservoir in a refrigerated compartment that feeds six spigots, four drinking water fountains and two dog bowls. The trailer can also pull water from a hydrant. In the event of a disaster, the trailer can also be used to provide temporary emergency water for Tulsans.

Here are a few important facts about Tulsa’s drinking water:

• Tulsa consistently provides some of the safest and highest quality water in the country.

• The City of Tulsa supplies drinking water to more than 139,600 metered accounts in the city. In addition, wholesale water service is provided to eight suburban communities and nine rural water districts, for a total population served of more than 600,000 people in the metropolitan area.

• Tulsa has two water treatment plants – Mohawk and A.B. Jewell – that can treat 220 million gallons of water per day (MGD). Tulsa’s water distribution system consists of 2,237 miles of underground water lines, thousands of valves, 146,000 water meters, 16,350 hydrants, 12 pump stations and 12 treated water storage reservoirs in the Tulsa city limits.

• Average water consumption in the Tulsa area is 102 million gallons per day. Individual consumption equates to 80–100 gallons of water per day, on average.

The City of Tulsa’s Water & Sewer Department is responsible for the operations of quality assurance, water supply, water distribution, underground collections, waste systems and administration as it relates to water and sewer. The Tulsa Metropolitan Utility Authority is a public trust organization created by the City charter and responsible for water and sewer policy matters by managing, constructing, and maintaining Tulsa's water works and sanitary sewer systems. 

For more than 35 years, the American Water Works Association and cities across the country have celebrated Drinking Water Week, a unique opportunity for both water professionals and communities to join together in recognizing the vital role water plays.

Learn more about the City of Tulsa’s drinking water by visiting www.tulsawaterworks.com or https://www.cityoftulsa.org/government/departments/water-and-sewer/.