City of Tulsa Participates in National Drinking Water Week, May 1-7

5/2/2022

National Effort Raises Awareness about the Value of Quality Drinking Water

This week, the City of Tulsa is celebrating National Drinking Water Week to recognize the vital role tap water plays in daily life, the infrastructure required to carry it to and from homes and businesses, and the important - and often unnoticed - work of water professionals.

“It’s easy to take clean water for granted and forget it’s there for all the essential services we rely on,” said Clayton Edwards, Water & Sewer Director. “Tulsans can be proud of all the hard-working City employees and the infrastructure we have in place that delivers high-quality drinking water throughout the city every day.”

Water systems across the country play a critical role in consumer health, hygiene, and hydration. More than a million miles of buried pipes ensure reliable water is collected, treated, and transported to homes and businesses for cleaning, hydration, and cooking.

To commemorate the week, Mayor G.T. Bynum signed a proclamation, proclaiming May 1-7, “Safe Drinking Water Week.”

The City of Tulsa and other water utilities, water organizations, government entities, environmental advocates, schools, and organizations throughout North America encourage consumers to learn more about the vital role of water and water infrastructure, especially in times of crisis.

Here are a few facts about Tulsa’s drinking water:

• Tulsa consistently provides some of the safest and highest quality water in the United States.
• The City of Tulsa supplies drinking water to more than 139,600 metered accounts in the city. In addition, wholesale water service is provided to eight suburban communities and nine rural water districts, for a total population served of more than 600,000 people in the metropolitan area.
• Tulsa has two water treatment plants – Mohawk and A.B. Jewell – that can treat 220 million gallons of water per day (MGD). Tulsa’s water distribution system consists of 2,237 miles of underground water lines, thousands of valves, 146,000 water meters, 16,350 hydrants, 12 pump stations, and 12 treated water storage reservoirs in the Tulsa city limits.
• The average water consumption in the Tulsa area is 102 million gallons per day. On average, the individual consumption equates to 80 – 100 gallons of water per day.

The City of Tulsa’s Water & Sewer Department is responsible for water supply and treatment, water distribution, sewer line operations, wastewater treatment, laboratory testing, and water-quality assurance. The Tulsa Metropolitan Utility Authority is a public trust organization created by the City charter and responsible for water and sewer policy matters by managing, constructing, and maintaining Tulsa’s waterworks and sanitary sewer systems.

For more than 40 years, the American Water Works Association and cities across the country have celebrated Drinking Water Week, a unique opportunity for both water professionals and communities to come together in recognizing the vital role water plays.

To learn more about the City of Tulsa’s drinking water, visit www.cityoftulsa.org/waterandsewer.