The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1916-06-27
WATER PUR-lFTCATION
EXPERT VISITS CITY
And Praises the Work OF the
Local Water Works and
Sewerage Board.

Charles p. Hoover. noted chemist IN
charge Of the Columbus. o., water puri-
acRtion works and an expert bacter-
iologist and author. is business via
ltor in tho city and is spending some
time with local water works officials
After n study OF the local puriHca-
ton works Mr.. Hoover spoke enter.
tGininBly OF the rapid sand process Of
filtration Installed at Columbus.
ClRrksburg and elsewhere throughout
the country, as follows:
There exists much misunderStand-
ing. prejudice and mystery concerning
the art Of water publication. shall
describe briefly the operation Of the
Columbus, o., water publication plant,
and show that the chemically purified
water Is not "dOped" with chemicals
as Is sometimes stated by those who
do not understand the changes which
take place in the chemical treatment
Of public water supply.
Few cities have had 30 difficult a
public water supply problem to solve
rs did the city of Columbus, O.. for
years prior TO the installation VI the
present plant. sewage polluted water
from Alum creek and the OlentAngy
and Scioto rivers was pumped into the
distributing system Of the city.
The water polluted with sewage was
nj times extremely muddy and "a the
watersheds OF the above mentioned
streams are undCrlaid with limestone
and rock the water passing over and
through this limestone was very hard.
The hardness was 80 excessive that the
water was not satisfactory for dOmcs-
tic or commercial uses. II would not
lather freely with soap and when used
for boiler feed purposes was very in
furious to the boilers due to the large
amount Of scale deposited on tho boil
or tubes. Tho water was so impure
that severe epidemicS Of typhoid fever
were OF frequent occurrence. and Col
umbus was recognized as having pOr-
haps as high typhoid fever death
rate az any large city in the United
States In 1904. Just year previous
to the time work was started on the
improved water supply. tho typhoid
fever death rate was 1870 per 100000.
disgrace TO any American city.
After heavy rains the water was ~
turbid or muddy that II was almost
impossible to use II for domestic or
other purposes. The reader will per-
haps realize how muddy the water
really was by knowing that now after
heavy rains MS much as 100000 pounds
Of mud are removed from a single
days supply Of water
When the Columbus plant
was placed in service con-
sumOrs felt that the use Of
chemicals for the Eoftcning aud purl-
flying process would rot he desirable,
and consequently had some hcSitnncy
in using the chemically treated water.
This prejudice has now been almost
entirely overcome and the citizens Of
Columbus are beginning to realize
that the water is not doped with chem
icals but that thcNs Is less min
eral matter or chemicals in
the softened and purified water
thai there Is in the raw river water.
The chemicals which are added In or
der to soften and purify the water
combine with the soluble mineral salts
already present in the raw water and
new compounds are formed. These
new chemical compounds which are
formed. are different frorI these orig
!na'ly present and are also different
from the chemicals added in that the
chemical added to the water and the
mineral salts present in the raw water
are soluble, whereas. these new com
pounds which are formed are not SOL
uble and consequently arc easily re-
moved from the treated water. The
chemicals added as we'll as the min
eral salts already present are removed
by the publication process and. there
fore, us has been already stated. there
is less chemical or mineral content
present in the softened and filtered
water than in the raw river water"
Mr.. Hoover warmly praised the work
accomplished at the local filtration
plant and stated that nowhere in this
country was there being produced n
purer, safer public water supply.