Grants Pass to Highlight Infrastructure Investment

During National Drinking Water Week

[Grants Pass, OR] – The City of Grants Pass and partners throughout North America will kick off Drinking Water Week by showcasing the ways tap water is “There When You Need It.” This annual event celebrated the first full week of May (May 1-7 this year), recognizes the vital role tap water plays in daily life, the infrastructure that is required to carry it to and from homes and businesses, and the critical work that water professionals accomplish around the clock to ensure the delivery of quality tap water.

 “Our bodies are made up of mostly water and we need to stay hydrated to stay healthy and function properly,” said Public Works Director, Jason Canady. “This week helps create awareness about how many times a day we use water from a faucet. In Grants Pass, it happens many times a day, every day. Fortunately, people can count on the City’s Water Treatment Plant delivering that high-quality water for everything from cooking and bathing to gardening and washing clothes.”

 The Grants Pass water legacy is the envy of many other Oregon towns. People have lived along the Rogue River and its tributaries for at least 8,500 years and the river has supplied the City with drinking water since 1888. This amazing watershed also provides world-famous white-water recreation, parks, hiking trails, and campgrounds.

 “Grants Pass has been blessed with an amazing water resource and Drinking Water Week lets us take a moment to reflect on our responsibility to make investments that protect the resource and ensure safe, secure water is available to the next generation,” added Canady. He continued, “Our water sector professionals, the infrastructure they work to design, create and maintain, and the treatment process all work in harmony to ensure safe tap water is ‘There When You Need It.’”

 The year’s theme, “drinking water there when you need it,” has been particularly timely for Water Treatment Superintendent Adam Smith, who noted, “The City Council has made a tremendous commitment to ensuring the Grants Pass community will always have high-quality water there when you need it.” As an example, he points to the construction of the replacement water treatment plant and continued, “This investment will improve reliability and operational flexibility, leverage new technology, be more environmentally friendly, and increase efficiencies, offering the community great benefits.”

 As part of the celebration, the Grants Pass Public Works Department will be offering tours of the Water Treatment Plant on May 3 and the Water Restoration Plant on May 2. Sign up by calling 541.450.6110.

 Also, as part of its celebration, the City is sponsoring a poster contest for local students. Winners will receive prizes. The winning entries will be featured on social media, and in promotional activities. Contest details and rules are on the City website at: https://www.grantspassoregon.gov/1408/Poster-contest---Drinking-Water-Week

 The entire community is invited to help commemorate the week. Some options are to add an extra glass of tap water to their diet or to pick up a book about the water cycle to share with a young reader. They can also visit the City water utility website https://www.grantspassoregon.gov/354/Water to learn more about ongoing water infrastructure investments and improvements, and where the City’s drinking water comes from.