This article chronicles advances in the filtration of public drinking water supplies from the late 1800s to today and discusses the future of filtration. Topics covered include: granular media's evolution over the years; pretreatment practices consisting of coagulation, mixing and clarification; current availability of filters and membranes; and, future advances in filtration.

Efforts to reduce energy costs of water distribution should focus on the area of greatest consumption—electrical energy for high‐service pumping. The economic importance of energy cost reduction measures may double, or perhaps triple, within the life of current distribution system improvements; overall, the greatest price increase is expected in the demand charge area.

Maintaining a consistent low‐level filtered water turbidity is a regulatory requirement promulgated by the Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule. This article discusses how to achieve a recommended treatment goal for filtered water with a turbidity of less than 0.1 ntu. Topics covered include: accurate turbidity measurement; eliminating turbidity spikes; and, examining filters.