The mission of the Water Resources Department is to produce and distribute potable water for domestic and commercial use and to collect, treat, and dispose of domestic and commercial wastewater. These services provide value to the greater Rocky Mount community by promoting economic prosperity, preserving public health and safety, and ensuring a viable future through responsible utilization of natural resources. The Wastewater Treatment Division is responsible for the efficient and economical operation of the City's wastewater treatment plant and its related systems in order to remove contaminants from city wastewater in compliance with all permits and federal and state regulations.
Items of Interest
Water Disinfection
The City has changed its water system disinfection process from chlorine to chloramines. Click on one of the links below to read all of the details.
The Old Mill Dam on Falls Road. This dam is critical to the operation of the Sunset Water Plant just upstream because it backs up the river.
The I-95 Crossing of the Tar River is considered the "top" of the lake.
This photo shows the normal flow over the dam at the Tar River reservoir. The State requires a certain minimum down river flow (in cubic feet per second) based upon the current conservation level. The minimum release rate is 60 cfs during Mandatory I Conservation or higher.
This photo shows water being released from one of the two gates at the Tar River reservoir dam. There are two gate sections, each of which can be raised and lowered hydraulically. In the picture, the gate closest to the camera has been lowered in order to remove debris from the overflow. This process can also be used to lower the level of the lake if the threat of a flooding storm is imminent. This is only performed when the reservoir is at maximum capacity.
The Hanson Quarry on NC-97. This will be a future water source when Hanson moves operations across the river to a new site. It is estimated that it will hold over 2 billion gallons of water or 60% of the Tar River Reservoir.
The City's quarries on Old Mill Road - pumping from these quarries into Maple Creek reduces the Reservoir Dam release rate by an equivalent amount. The red dots at the top of the lake on the left are the pump floats. These two quarries are critical during drought conditions and hold approximately 600 million gallons combined.