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Milwaukee Water Works
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The Milwaukee Water Works has provided 145 years of continuous service as of September 14, 2019. Read our history brochure The Milwaukee Water Works was organized on April 18, 1871 and began operations September 14, 1874. We are proud to serve as the longest continuously operating water utility in Wisconsin. The Linnwood Water Treatment Plant was named a Water Landmark by the American Water Works Association in 2019. The plant has been continuously operating since 1939. The North Point Water Tower was designated a Water Landmark in 1969, the inaugural year of the award. The utility is owned by the City of Milwaukee. Policy is set by the Mayor and Common Council. We adhere to regulations of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for facilities, operations, and water quality. The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC) sets water rates and service charges and monitors our accounting.
We purify Lake Michigan water to provide pure and fresh drinking water to 866,993 people in 16 communities in Milwaukee, Ozaukee and Waukesha Counties.
The Water Research Foundation (WRF) honored the Milwaukee Water Works with its 2016 Outstanding Subscriber Award for Applied Research for the utility response during the two decades following the 1993 Cryptosporidium crisis. Read the Milwaukee Water Works ozone research story.
The award honors utilities that have successfully applied WRF research to make notable improvements to their water treatment, delivery and management processes and "celebrates the persistence and dedication of some of WRF's most influential partners." Milwaukee water continues to participate in WRF projects benefitting the drinking water community, as seen in a video here.
In the first 25 years after the Cryptosporidium crisis in 1993, the Milwaukee Water Works invested $508 million in its infrastructure to ensure a reliable supply of safe drinking water.
The Wisconsin Section of the American Water Works Association presented its 2016 Utility Special Achievement Award to the Milwaukee Water Works for working effectively with health and regulatory agencies to shape field and water quality monitoring activities and customer outreach to reduce lead at customers’ taps. Read about the Lead Service Line award.
The MWW water quality team was published nationally in January 2017 when the Journal of the American Water Works Association ran Milwaukee's research findings about lead and drinking water sampling, which were reviewed by the City of Milwaukee Health Department, Wisconsin Department of Health Services and Department of Natural Resources and EPA. Read "Lead Water Service Lines: Extensive Sampling and Field Protocol Protects Public Health"
Milwaukee is enriched with an abundant water resource in Lake Michigan. Water treated and used is returned to the lake. The Milwaukee Water Works practices environmental stewardship, reducing its energy, carbon, and water footprints to use water wisely and conserve energy resources. Here's a diagram of how Best Practices Support Sustainable Water Water Systems.