Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County - Yough Plant

Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County - Yough Plant Municipal Water Report Info

The Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County was established by the Westmoreland County Commissioners on April 9, 1942 and celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2017. Their municipal water system developed over 75+ years through strategic acquisitions and planned pipeline expansions to accommodate growth.

In 1943, MAWC acquired Citizens Water Co. By 1950, they had purchased Westmoreland Water Co. and Vandergrift Water Co., beginning plans to construct the current Beaver Run Reservoir. McKeesport's Water System joined their network in 1987. Through these expansions, their service territory now spans approximately 25 miles east to west and 40 miles north to south, encompassing over 2,400 miles of pipeline.

Since 1973, the Authority has relied on two primary supply sources:

• BEAVER RUN RESERVOIR - Built in 1952 and expanded in 1962, with current capacity of 11 billion gallons and safe yield of 45 million gallons daily
• THE YOUGHIOGHENY RIVER - With a drainage area of 1,326 square miles and minimum flow of 213 million gallons daily

The system is currently served by three modern treatment facilities:

• INDIAN CREEK SUPPLY FILTRATION PLANT - Located near Connellsville, rated at 40 million gallons daily, drawing from Indian Creek and Youghiogheny River to serve southern MAWC territory and North Versailles. Built in 1973, upgraded in 1979 and 2017-2018.
• MCKEESPORT FILTRATION PLANT - Completed in 1990 with 10 million gallon daily capacity, drawing from Youghiogheny River to serve McKeesport, White Oak and Port Vue areas.
• THE GEORGE R. SWEENEY WATER TREATMENT PLANT - Located at Beaver Run Reservoir in Bell Township, replacing a smaller facility in 1997. Upgraded in 2015 with 24 million gallon daily capacity, serving northern MAWC territory.

In 2012, MAWC completed an interconnection with Greater Johnstown Water Authority, allowing decommissioning of its Furnace Run Water Treatment Plant. The Ligonier area now receives water treated by GJWA from North Fork Reservoir. MAWC also sells bulk water to multiple communities in Allegheny, Fayette, and Armstrong Counties.