NEW VIRTUAL TOUR REVEALS INSIDE LOOK AT WATER TREATMENT
District mascots Wendy and Wally lead viewers on a fun, educational journey through the process

December 7, 2020 – Rowland Water District presents a fun and educational virtual video tour to explore how the District produces safe and reliable water. The tour, titled “Where Does Your Water Come From?” is led by the District’s mascots, Wendy and Wally, and takes viewers on a journey through the inner workings of the water treatment process.

The video explores conventional water treatment at the Three Valleys Municipal Water District’s filtration plant in Claremont, where the District’s water is processed. Wendy and Wally cheerfully provide an overview of the 444 miles that the water travels through the State Water Project, from the mountains of Northern California through the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to Southern California.

Next, Wendy and Wally engage Dominique Aguiar, Operations Supervisor at Three Valleys Municipal Water District. Aguiar leads them through the treatment facility while explaining what it takes to purify water. The process includes a labyrinth of pipes, valves and pumps to ensure all pathogens are removed, resulting in clean, safe drinking water.

“We wanted to take the public through the entire process, from receiving the water to treating it for delivery,” Rowland Water District General Manager Tom Coleman said. “This is an entertaining and easy-to-understand video that explains a complicated process that most people don’t think about.”

Upon completion of the video tour, viewers will understand the standard purification steps taken to disinfect and neutralize water, which include coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, filtration and disinfection. Generally unknown to the public, the process is composed of many different interwoven operational components, which are managed by a supercomputer, SCADA, standing for Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition, acting as the brain power of the system.

The tour video is a component to of the District’s Mini Science Challenge and adds to a full complement of virtual educational resources and activities developed by the District’s Education & Community Outreach Coordinator, Brittnie Van De Car to accommodate remote learning and social distancing requirements under COVID-19.

Because the pandemic has prevented students from being able to tour the facility in person, Rowland Water District has collaborated with local schools to provide a virtual curriculum designed for 4th-6th grade classrooms including the virtual tour and scavenger hunt, along with other interactive experiences. Students taking the challenge were required to watch it and present a report on the filtration component.

“We didn’t want to miss an opportunity to educate school-age children about the water process. Our virtual activities are fun, engaging and, most of all, educational,” Van De Car said.
The virtual tour and more information about Rowland Water District can be accessed online at rwd.org.