(Editor’s note: The recently published Spirit of Rowan featured a story by Salisbury Academy Upper School student Kylie Bailey about a field trip to meet Dr. Wayne Koontz, who shared tales of the Yadkin River’s rich past. The field trip was part of a larger course of study at the downtown-Salisbury school. Other students chronicled what they learned on various field trip and those stories will be shared throughout upcoming Salisbury Post editions. Today’s article is by Ariel Mineral.)

By Ariel Mineran

For the Salisbury Post

Do you know where the water you drink comes from? The Yadkin River is our community’s lifeline, providing the water we drink and carrying away the wastewater we generate. Our Salisbury Academy Environmental Science class followed the path of the drinking water processed through Salisbury-Rowan Utilities (SRU) from the Yadkin River to the faucet and back to the river again. 

When we visited the SRU water treatment plant, just a few blocks from our school on Depot Street, we stood on the platform and watched the dirty Yadkin water race into the treatment plant. I had many questions, but mainly, “How can we drink water that is this dirty?” Think about the water treatment plant as a hero in ensuring safe and clean drinking water. It works hard by using filters, purification systems and disinfectants to get rid of any dirty stuff in our water, like germs, harmful chemicals and bacteria.  

Senior Plant Operator Darrell Horner explained that a substrate as simple as sand can provide a filter for the water to pass through in a stage of the cleaning process. Some additional chemicals encourage the unwanted materials to stick together. At each stage of the process, the water became cleaner and cleaner. On average, the Salisbury water treatment plant treats 9.7 million gallons of water a day. 

Horner showed us the large computer screens where every water tank in the county can be monitored to ensure conditions are right for delivery to homes through pipes and faucets. 

We also visited the wastewater treatment plant, which is like a clean-up crew taking care of all the dirty water that leaves our homes through toilets and drains. Wastewater treatment purifies dirty water using filters and microbes that remove pollutants and unwanted substances before it’s sent back to the environment.

Brian Waller SRU Senior Wastewater Operator explained the water at the plant is tested for pH, turbidity and microorganisms every four hours, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The two treatment plants that make up the SRU wastewater system are treating an average of 8.7 million gallons a day. This means that not only is the wastewater treatment plant keeping our homes and community clean, but the system also ensures that the Yadkin is being kept safe from contamination. 

Our class also met Edgar Miller, the Yadkin Riverkeeper, who explained his mission is to protect and enhance the Yadkin Pee Dee River basin through education, advocacy and action. According to the Riverkeeper, we currently do not have regulations on phosphorus and nitrogen coming out with wastewater unless it is in a sensitive watershed such as High Rock Lake. Phosphorus and nitrogen matter to the Yadkin River because too many nutrients can cause harmful algae growth and eventually lead to water pollution and harming aquatic life. 

Ben Parker, a stormwater public works engineering technician with the city of Salisbury, is part of a technical advisory group that provides feedback to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on regulations to protect the Yadkin. DEQ is fostering collaboration between stakeholders and sectors that rely on the Yadkin and High Rock Lake to develop a nutrient-sensitive water management strategy for the watershed that balances conservation and regulation. By addressing nutrient loads in the Yadkin, toxic algal blooms can be minimized, and the health of the watershed can be maintained.

Anyone who turns on their tap fed by the Salisbury Rowan Utility system is dependent on the water that flows through the Yadkin. The advanced infrastructure provided by the water and wastewater treatment plants allows us to have reliable, clean water. Coupled with responsible water management and conservation efforts, we will continue to enjoy a healthy source of water in our community for years to come.