Department of Public Works (DPW)

Utilities Division

The Utilities Division is supervised by the Utilities Manager.

Eric Witter P.E.
Utilities Manager
100 McMorran Blvd.
Port Huron, MI 48060
810-984-9730
wittere@porthuron.org

The Division has four major functions:

1. Treatment of potable water for the water system customers.
2. Distribution of water to the various customer locations, such as homes, business and industry.
3. Collection of wastewater from the various premises after it has been utilized and the conveyance of that wastewater to the Wastewater Treatment Plant.
4. Treatment of the wastewater and contaminant removal with clean water being returned to the St. Clair River.

This cycle of water use and re-use is accomplished by the three sections of the Utilities Division.

Water Filtration Plant

The Water Filtration Plant is located in Pine Grove Park. The City obtains its water from the St. Clair River, approximately 1/2 mile south of the Blue Water Bridge. This filtration plant provides clean, safe, potable water to the City of Port Huron and the Townships of Port Huron, Fort Gratiot, Kimball and Clyde. The City also maintains sufficient reserves for peak day and peak hour flows and fire protection to these communities. The treatment process within the Water Filtration Plant consists of chlorination for disinfection, the addition of aluminum sulfate to aid in sedimentation. This is followed by rapid sand filtration, fluoridation and highlift pumping to the water towers and distribution system.

The plant operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Special programs provided include group tours of the facilities and operations for schools and community organizations. Bacterial laboratory analysis for drinking water is also provided for the general public upon request and payment of a nominal cost.

Utility Services

The Utility Services section of this division has three main functions which include the distribution of water, water metering and wastewater collection.

The water distribution responsibilities include the maintenance of 1,314 fire hydrants, the installation of new water services, tapping the system for large scale commercial or industrial use and the maintenance of several thousand water valves.

The water metering operations include the periodic collection of meter reading data for over 11,000 water meters. It also includes the installation and repairs of water meters, water shut-off and turn-on functions and customer complaints.

Wastewater Treatment Plant

The Wastewater Treatment Plant is located at 100 Merchant Street and is owned and operated by the City. The plant is a regional facility serving industrial, commercial and residential customers in the City of Port Huron, and the Townships of Port Huron, Fort Gratiot, and Kimball. The plant has a design average flow of 20 million gallons per day and is currently treating an average of 11 million gallons per day. The treatment of the wastewater results in the removal of approximately 2,000 tons of residuals each year, in the form of biosolids. These biosolids are removed from the wastewater prior to discharging the treated wastewater to the St. Clair River. The biosolids formed during the removal process are recycled to area farms for use as fertilizer and soil conditioner.

The Wastewater Treatment Plant is staffed 24 hours a day, however, the major maintenance crews and laboratory staff work regular business hours.

Special services offered through the Wastewater Treatment Plant include implementation and enforcement of an Industrial Pretreatment Program. This program ensures that industrial and commercial customers meet local and federal standards on sewage discharges. This protects the wastewater plant's ability to function and the quality of biosolids produced. Plant staff also provide the inspection and enforcement of the State Cross Connection Program for the protection of potable water supplies.

The Wastewater Treatment Plant offers many types of tours, including facility tours, technical tours, and environmental and resource recovery issue tours of interest to high schools and college level classes. These tours are available to area organizations, school groups or interest groups.

All facility tours may be set-up by contacting that individual plant of operation.