Annual Water Treatment Changeover Begins February 28

One of the many ways Fayetteville PWC continues to provide high-quality water throughout the treatment process involves temporarily stopping the addition of ammonia. Beginning on Friday, February 28, PWC will halt the use of ammonia as required by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. This annual one-time pause ensures that any biological growth within the distribution system is controlled. This practice is part of our ongoing commitment to providing safe and clean water to our community.

PWC is extending the treatment changeover to six weeks this year to ensure water quality standards for wholesale customers on the north end of our service area who are also served by Harnett Regional Water, including Fort Bragg and the Town of Spring Lake.  PWC will resume adding ammonia to the water treatment disinfection process on Monday, April 14, 2025.

PWC is committed to ensuring we provide quality drinking water for our customers. The annual water treatment changeover helps do this by cleansing the water main walls and reducing biofilm that diminishes the effectiveness of residual disinfectants.  Over time, minerals and metals, which are naturally present in the water source, can increase and attach to pipe walls, and release when there are changes in pressure, resulting in discoloration and affecting taste. Other processes such as nitrification and the growth of biofilm can also occur in the water distribution system and have significant effects on water quality.

All PWC water customers – including residential, commercial, and wholesale customers at Fort Bragg, Town of Spring Lake, Hoke County, Town of Stedman – may notice their drinking water smells of chlorine during the changeover but there are no associated health risks to the process.  Here are some other things to note as well:

• Expected effects: During these efforts to improve water quality, there will be times of lower water pressure, possible odor, changes in taste, discoloration, and small particles/bubbles in the water. PWC will flush the water mains using open fire hydrants throughout the changeover period to help clear these effects.
• The water is safe to drink: PWC is dedicated to making sure the water is safe to drink and will monitor disinfectant levels continually during the changeover process. If you experience odor or taste in your water, it does not mean it is unsafe to drink. Odors are caused by the free chlorine disinfectant cleansing the system. These issues should go away as the changeover is completed.  You can also report them to Customer Service at 910-483-1382 if they persist.
• During the changeover, traces of ammonia may still be in the water: There are two groups of people who need to take special care with chloraminated water, even during the annual changeover period: water customers who pre-treat to remove chloramines prior to the water being used, such as dialysis patients and fish owners. 

About PWC’s Water Treatment Process

PWC uses chloramination as our main disinfectant. Chloramine inactivates and prevents pathogen growth in our system by utilizing both ammonia and chlorine. Ammonia is added to the water at a carefully controlled level, and the chlorine and ammonia react chemically to produce chloramines. This method inactivates the COVID-19 virus, as well as other coronaviruses.

PWC began adding ammonia to the water treatment process in March of 2003.  Using ammonia in the treatment process helps to reduce disinfection by-products in our drinking water.  The temporary switch to chlorine-only disinfection is not expected to cause any significant increases in disinfection by-products.  PWC has been in compliance with all disinfection by-product limits since beginning the addition of ammonia in March of 2003.

You can read more about our treatment process, water quality, and testing results in our Annual Water Quality Report.  If you have questions about the water treatment process, please call (910) 483-1382.