If the PWD built a water filtration plant, would there still be a need for lake protection?

Absolutely. The PWD was granted a waiver from the filtration requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act in part because lake water quality is so high. The PWD believes the waiver to filtration saves our customers a significant amount of money without compromising the protection of their health. And we are committed to protection of the source as one component of our effort to maintain the waiver. But PWD was committed to protecting Sebago Lake before the waiver and will continue to protect the lake as long as it is a source of drinking water, regardless of the type of treatment used. Filtration and other forms of treatment are not perfect. The only absolute barrier to waterborne pathogens is to prevent them from ever being introduced to the source of supply.