The MDC's raw water comes entirely from surface water sources in watersheds that
cover approximately 89.7 square miles in Connecticut and Massachusetts. The main
surface water supplies are the 30.3 billion gallon Barkhamsted Reservoir and the
9.5 billion gallon Nepaug Reservoir located in the northwest hills of Connecticut.
Water flows by gravity through pipes to the treatment facilities
in West Hartford and Bloomfield, where an average of 55 million gallons of water
is treated daily. The facilities treat all of the drinking water provided to MDC
customers.
The MDC owns over 31,000 acres of land, the bulk of which is watershed forest land.
MDC manages these natural resources in order to protect the
watersheds which feed its supplies. While the "remote" location of the watersheds
reduces the potential for pollution, an aggressive MDC source protection
program further ensure the quality of reservoir supplies.
Each year, the MDC's state-licensed Water Analysis Laboratory, located at Reservoir
6 in Bloomfield, conducts more than 100,000 physical, chemical and bacteriological
tests. These tests search for over 130 potential water contaminants at the MDC's
reservoirs, treatment plants and numerous state-approved sampling sites throughout
the 12 town service area. These tests and others conducted at various consulting
laboratories ensure the community and customers that the MDC's drinking water is
of the highest quality.
The MDC provides water service to approximately 90,000 customers and 400,000 people
in the eight member towns and parts of East Granby, Farmington, Glastonbury, South
Windsor, Manchester and Windsor Locks.
