CUD receives Prestigious Award

Feb 03, 2025 at 06:08 am by WGNS


Murfreesboro, TN - The K. Thomas Hutchinson Water Treatment Plant of Consolidated Utility District (CUD) has earned the 2024 Directors Award through the Partnership for Safe Water.  The partnership provides a new measure of public health protection where laws and regulations do not yet exist in areas ranging from data collection to quality control measures.

Every day, raw water arrives at the plant via one or more 350-horsepower pumps. Water then flows through a multiple-step disinfection process that includes sand and anthracite filters before it is later pumped to the distribution system for customers in Rutherford County through a network of over 1,500 miles of water lines.

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Staff at the plant submitted an assessment that included over 100 questions covering areas such as water quality, disinfection, source water, filtering, recycling, staff training, and administrative policies.

“Our staff pulled together a great deal of data about our operations to build our entry for this award,” said Chris Forte, Director of Water Production at CUD. “Our plant is in service every day and night, so there’s a high level of transparency and accountability required. We’re very pleased to earn this honor, and plan to earn it again in the future.”

“Every member of the CUD workforce is highly invested in the quality of our work,” said Roger Goodson, General Manager of CUD. “This is actually the second award our plant has earned for excellence in the past two years. We’re committed to living out our vision and mission statements every day to honor our Core Values and the needs of our customers.”

To receive the Directors Award, the plant was required to deliver proof of its optimized treatment system across three phases:

  • Commitment – full compliance with all applicable health-based regulations for a minimum of six months prior to the application date for the award
  • Data collection – submission of 12 months of performance data to demonstrate ongoing optimization efforts
  • Self-assessment – includes a schematic of the treatment plant, filtration data, and distribution system performance that is reviewed by utility peers and experts

CUD was formed in 1968 to bring safe, reliable water service to the more rural areas of Rutherford County through one central utility. CUD now serves over 200,000 residents.

Brought online in 1983, the K. Thomas Hutchinson Water Treatment Plant has undergone a number of expansions to serve the ongoing growth of the county’s population. In 2020, the plant saw its largest expansion to date, increasing its maximum daily capacity to 32 million gallons of water.

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