.svg)
The largest water treatment plant in the State of Arkansas is set to receive a $230 million overhaul.
The Jack H. Wilson Water Treatment Plant in west Little Rock is being renovated to deal with new regulations, changes to its water source and any emerging contaminants while increasing its treatment capacity from 133 million gallons per day to 150 million, according to an article in the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
One of Central Arkansas Water’s two water treatment facilities, the nearly-70-year-old Wilson plant receives water from the Lake Maumelle reservoir. This renovation project is Central Arkansas Water’s biggest ever, according to reporting by Construction Dive, which spoke with Central Arkansas Water spokesperson, Douglas Shackelford.
Construction will be conducted in phases, with the facility remaining operational throughout. Work is expected to take about five years to complete.
“This plant is vital to our system, and so we can’t shut it down. It’s got to be operational while construction is going on,” Shackelford said. “There are four large water basins in the facility, and we will essentially shut down one and renovate that basin and then keep the other three open and working while one is under construction.”
“[New technology is] going to allow us to move the water through it at a faster pace that would allow for the capacity increase,” he continued. That will “help us out in the long run, because obviously, as cities grow and demand goes higher for water, we need to be able to produce it.”
The Max Foote Construction Co. is the project’s construction manager at-risk. Unlike with Design-Build projects, during construction manager at-risk projects, design and construction are separate contracts and criteria other than lowest total construction cost factor into the selection of the construction manager.
“CM-at-Risk allows for the early project involvement of a CM who can partner with the A/E and Agency to provide constructability assistance, estimating, design review and early procurement opportunities,” writes Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America. “Additionally, the start of construction can begin prior to 100% complete design documents. The CM-at-Risk typically also provides detailed cost estimates early in the design phase, so that value engineering and cost reduction ideas can be considered when they are the most easily addressed.”
The State of America’s Drinking Water Infrastructure
Arkansas’ investment in its largest water treatment facility comes just as the nation is seeing the first positive signs from recent, widespread investments in critical infrastructure.
America’s infrastructure received its highest-ever grade in the American Society of Civil Engineers’ 2025 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure. The country received an overall grade of “C”, with eight of the 18 categories assessed by ASCE seeing grade increases, and – for the first time since 1998 – no categories receiving a rating of D- or lower.
“For more than two decades, the message behind the unflattering grades was consistent: federal, state, and local governments, in addition to the private sector, have not been prioritizing our interdependent infrastructure systems,” the ASCE wrote in the 2025 report card’s executive summary. “In sum, the bill on our infrastructure systems was past due. We needed to reverse the nation’s growing infrastructure investment gap to remain competitive in the global marketplace, allow local businesses to thrive, and keep our families safely connected. That message grew louder with each evaluation, through our most recent Report Card release in early 2021”.
Drinking water received a grade of C-. This was the same grade it earned in the previous report card released in 2021, with the ASCE noting in the 2025 report the need for additional funding to assess this infrastructure’s shortcomings.
“The nation’s water infrastructure is aging and underfunded,” the ASCE wrote. “More than 9 million existing lead service lines pose health concerns, and in 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determined that the nation’s water infrastructure needs stand at $625 billion over 20 years. That exceeds EPA’s 2018 assessment by more than $150 billion. The 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) invested more than $30 billion for drinking water capital improvements, removal of lead service lines, and addressing emerging contaminants such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). However, funding shortfalls continue in state revolving funds that support drinking water.”
In addition to the advanced age of much of the U.S.’s water infrastructure, the ASCE outlined other challenges in this sector such as emerging contaminants and the increasingly severe effects of extreme weather.
The ASCE said that the implementation of asset management plans is a critical step needed to address the challenges facing America’s drinking water infrastructure.
“Many drinking water utilities are actively improving infrastructure through innovations such as asset failure prediction technologies, which improve the ability to identify issues before they become failures. Unfortunately, only about 30% of utilities have fully implemented an asset management plan, and just under half are in the process of implementing one.”
Let GPRS Help You Maintain Your Water Infrastructure
GPRS is committed to helping you maintain the drinking water infrastructure under your care.
We offer pinpoint-accurate leak detection services that utilize acoustic leak detection and leak detection correlators to ensure your water stays where it belongs. And our comprehensive suite of subsurface damage prevention, existing conditions documentation, and construction & facilities project management services help you plan, manage, and build better.
Our commitment to helping you maintain your infrastructure extends beyond the services we offer. GPRS also sponsors Water & Sewer Damage Awareness Week, an annual safety initiative designed to help water and wastewater system operators take a more proactive approach to maintaining their infrastructure.
During this event, our safety experts travel to your job site, office, council meeting – wherever you need us – to deliver free safety presentations to municipalities, engineers, facility managers, property management groups, and anyone else who is ready to regain control of their fresh and wastewater infrastructure.
Click here to schedule your free WSDAW presentation today!
Frequently Asked Questions
How many miles of underground water pipe can GPRS test for leaks in a single day?
While it can depend on a variety of factors, our leak detection Project Managers typically can inspect up to 10 miles of pipe a day on a metallic system (cast iron/ductile) and one contact point (hydrant/valve) per minute.
Can GPRS determine the size of a located leak?
After analyzing thousands of previous leaks detected, we asked clients to send us pictures of the remediation. This information has helped us compare our final leak signal detected with the results of the actual leak. We determine the size of the leak by how far the leak signal travels between contact points and the pitch of the tone received. We do not, however, produce formal leak estimations.
