The Portland Water Bureau entered into a compliance agreement with the Oregon Health Authority Drinking Water Services (DWS) that establishes a 10-year compliance schedule to build and begin operating a filtration water treatment facility to remove Cryptosporidium from Portland’s Bull Run source. The approved filtration schedule includes three primary phases:

• Planning (3 years): Staff identifies the type, size, and location of filtration needed, as well as how the new plant will work with the rest of the system. Planning includes piloting a model of the future filtration plant to develop the most affordable and effective design for Bull Run water.
• Design (2 years): Engineers develop detailed design drawings and specifications that tell the construction contractor exactly what to build.
• Construction and Commissioning (5 years): A construction contractor will construct the improvements and get the new plant running (commissioning) to verify everything is working as planned.

The treatment facility must be operational by Sept. 30, 2027. The current phase is the Project Planning Phase, which will continue through November 2020.