vedenottamo

Ved enottamo, or vedenottamo in Finnish, is a facility in a water supply system that withdraws raw water from natural sources such as lakes, rivers, or groundwater and conveys it to a treatment plant or storage reservoir. Its main purpose is to secure a reliable source of untreated water for drinking-water production while protecting the quality of the source.

A ved enottamo may include intake structures located at the shoreline or in a water body, intake pipes or tunnels, screens or grates to remove debris and protect aquatic life, gates and control equipment, and monitoring devices. The raw water is then transported to a treatment facility via pipelines, and may be delivered by gravity or with the help of pumping stations depending on the siting and design.

There are different types of vedenottamot according to the source material: surface-water intakes for lakes or rivers, groundwater well fields, and combined configurations that can switch between sources or adapt to seasonal changes in quality. Design considerations include securing sufficient water quantity, managing sediment and contaminants, protecting the ecosystem, and mitigating flood risks. Environmental protection measures often involve fish screens, debris management, and monitoring of intake-related impacts.

Regulation and maintenance are essential for vedenottamot. They operate under national or regional water regulations, environmental permits, and regular water-quality monitoring programs. Routine inspections, sediment control, and preventive maintenance are necessary to ensure continuity of supply, safety, and compliance with standards. In practice, vedenottamot serve municipal water supplies, industrial users, and other facilities that rely on treated water.