Water Treatment Water treatment is the process of cleaning the water. Treatment makes the water safe to drink because in nature, water is not always clean enough for humans to use. Both the Rock Creek and Taylor Water Treatment Plants use a four-step process to provide safe, clean drinking water to the residents and businesses of Corvallis.
Raw water is the term used to describe untreated water.
Alum makes particles like dirt, sediment, and other substances in the water coagulate, or stick together. In the second step, the water enters a huge settling tank, or sedimentation basin. During the third step, the overlying water leaves the settling tank and flows through a multi-media filter. The filters are about three feet deep and are made of layers of sand, garnet, gravel and activated carbon. The filters are used to remove any remaining particles in the water.