Massachusetts Regional Water Authority to Combine Ozone and UV for Disinfection

To meet new federal regulations aimed at reducing gastrointestinal illness from Giardia and Cryptosporidium microbes, the Marlborough plant will use ultraviolet light. The combination of treatments will allow for a reduction in the amount of ozone that is added to the water, which in turn will reduce our ozone operating expenses to offset increased operating expenses for the UV disinfection. The result will be two means of primary disinfection, but operating costs won’t increase significantly. The use of multiple barrier to further reduce risk from pathogens and decrease disinfection byproducts is a growing trend in the public drinking water systems.