Occoquan River Crossing Project

Growth in data centers, residential housing and commercial building has increased demand for drinking water in Prince William County. To meet that demand, Prince William Service Authority and Virginia American Water in collaboration with Fairfax Water will build two new 42-inch, parallel water mains to deliver water from the Fairfax Water Frederick P. Griffith Jr. Water Treatment Plant located in Fairfax County near Lorton. The new water mains will cross under the Occoquan River inside a 400-foot long tunnel and connect to existing water mains on the Prince William County side of the river. In addition, a new water main will be installed to connect the Griffith Water Treatment Plant  to the 42-inch water mains at the Occoquan River. This and the necessary ancillary equipment- two water interconnections and a new drinking water pump at Fairfax Water’s Griffith Plant make up the Occoquan River Crossing Project. The project will cost $13,637,000 and will be funded 30% from the “Availability Fees” the fee charged for new connections and 70% from “User Rates” folded into the cost of water for all.

When completed the project will include construction of two 700-foot long 42-inch steel water mains inside a 400-foot long tunnel that runs under the Occoquan River, 2,400 feet of 36-inch water main for to the existing transmission main and a new finished water pump at Fairfax Water’s Griffith Water Treatment Plant. This project will increase transmission capacity and reliability between the Griffith Water Treatment Plant  and the Service Authority’s existing and future customers by eliminating a single point of failure due to an existing single pipe at the Griffith Plant that supplies eastern Prince William County.

from Fairfax Water Townhall

 

User Rates: The Prince William County Service Authority sets user rates to cover the projected costs of operating and maintaining the water and sewer system, as well as debt service, and capital costs, for repair and replacements of the existing water and sewer system that benefit customers. User rates are set to recover the costs budgeted in the Operating Fund and Replacement Fund. The Authority’s Board of Directors approves the user rates.