The business behind the bills: PWC shares details on the long hours and processes that keep Fayetteville residents’ lights on and water running

By Stephanie Meador, posted May 4, 2023 on BizFayetteville.com

Today, May 4, is PWC Day. Several times a year, the Fayetteville Public Works Commission invites community stakeholders and customers to a day-long tour that includes their generation plant, water/wastewater treatment plants, customer service operations, emergency operations and the functions of line workers and water utility workers.

PWC is a public utility and PWC Day is one of several initiatives they have implemented to stay in touch with their customers and community. PWC serves over 110,000 people, employs 650 people and has been in business for 113 years.

The day began with an introduction and welcoming remarks from interim CEO/General Manager CEO Mick Noland.

“This is your hometown utility. We are very proud of what we do here. The staff is very engaged. They really care about what they're doing...There's all kinds of perils out there that mother nature and others throw at us. So we have a very dedicated staff…” said Noland.

Butler-Warner plant manager Ace May giving a tour of the equipment.

The first stop of the day was the Butler-Warner Generation Facility. Fayetteville PWC is the only municipal utility in the state that owns and operates a power generation plant. This plant earns $12 million annually to offset PWC power costs. PWC purchases power from Duke Energy and this plant is dispatched for use by Duke Energy in times of need such as extreme cold spells in winter or extreme heat waves in summer.

Giant screw pumps are the first step in wastewater treatment at the Cross Creek Water Reclamation Facility.

The second stop was the Cross Creek Water Reclamation Facility. The daily wastewater treatment capacity is 25 million gallons at Cross Creek and 46 million gallons across both facilities. This facility treats, disinfects and returns water to the Cape Fear River. Scott McCoy leads operations at this facility and the Rockfish Creek Water Reclamation Facility. “Essentially our responsibility is to protect the downstream user and the aquatic life, and that’s what we do,” stated McCoy.

Jason Green shows the difference between untreated water (left) and treated water (right) at the P.O. Hoffer Water Treatment Facility. Each of the taps to Greens right pulls water from a different step of the process for testing.

The third stop was the P.O. Hoffer Water Treatment Facility. PWC treats 10 billion gallons of drinking water a year and has a capacity for treating 57.7 million gallons daily across their two facilities. The P.O. Hoffer facility alone can treat Hoffer can treat 39.5 million gallons daily. At this location water, primarily sourced from the Cape Fear River, is treated to make it safe for drinking and then pumped into homes and businesses across the city.

It is easy to forget how much time and effort goes into having quick access to clean water and reliable heating and cooling systems. PWC Day is a great reminder of how important these jobs are in our daily lives.

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