NRVRWA Water Treatment Plant Modernization

The New River Valley Regional Water Authority (NRVRWA) owns and operates a conventional water treatment plant that serves the towns of Blacksburg and Christiansburg, Montgomery County, and Virginia Tech. To meet growing regional demand, NRVRWA launched a comprehensive program to expand treatment capacity, enhance operational efficiency, and equip the facility to address emerging contaminants.

CHA served as the Engineer of Record, providing planning, pilot testing, design, permitting, and construction phase services. The project increased treatment capacity from 12.4 to 16 million gallons per day while modernizing nearly every aspect of the facility. Improvements included rehabilitated raw water pump stations with new pumps and traveling screens, upgraded treatment processes featuring reconfigured flocculation basins and tube-settler technology, enhanced finished water facilities, a new SCADA system, upgraded chemical handling systems, and provisions for future granular activated carbon (GAC) and ozone treatment to address emerging contaminants, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

Extensive upgrades were completed while the plant remained operational, with carefully sequenced work that limited outages and preserved treatment capacity. The modernization also improved energy efficiency, operational flexibility, safety, and working conditions for plant staff. Designed to meet regional water needs for the next 50 years, the transformed facility strengthens water resilience, supports economic growth and academic research, and provides a reliable foundation for the communities it serves.