Alcantarilha Water Treatment Plant
The Alcantarilha Water Treatment Plant has a maximum production capacity of 259 000 m3/day, divided into two lines and supplied from the Funcho lagoon. Before 2010, it is expected to be interconnected with the Odelouca lagoon.
This Water Treatment Plant is about 10 km from Silves and 12 km from the Funcho dam, beside Alcantarilha-Gare. It began to be constructed in October 1998 and terminated in 1999.
Its maximum production capacity is 259,000 m3/day, which corresponds to a flow of 3m3/s, equivalent to a population of 620,000 inhabitants, foreseen for 2025. Due to the floating population to be supplied, the Water Treatment Plant has three parallel treatment lines in order to respond to water supply requirements during the high and low seasons.
The water treated at this plant is for high level distribution to the counties of Albufeira, Aljezur, Lagoa, Lagos, Monchique, Portimão, Loulé (West), Silves and Vila do Bispo, all of which belong to the Algarve Multi-municipal Water Supply System. It may be necessary to use the Reversible Pumping Station for obtaining water from the Sotavento Algarvio.
The general treatment scheme was designed to respond to adverse situations with regard to the characteristics of the water collected at the source, in order to guarantee the quality of the supply required for human consumption.
Surface water is collected from the Funcho lagoon, which is expected to be interconnected with the Odelouca lagoon. Water is supplied to the Alcantarilha Water Treatment Plant using gravity through a 2.5 m wide and 12 km long pipe.
SCHEMATIC PROFILE OF THE TREATMENT
WATER TREATMENT LINE
- Untreated water intake
- Pre-oxidation
- Rapid mixing
- Coagulation/Flocculation/Decantation
- Filtration
- Disinfection/pH adjustment
- Treated water
MUD TREATMENT LINE
- Water cistern for washing sand filters and Mud Cistern
- Mud Dehydration – Press Filters
- Water cistern for washing presses and Press Filtering Cistern
- Process Wastewater Decanters
