This article recounts the successful strategies implemented by the city of Waco, Texas, to improve the quality of its raw water reservoir. The control of taste- and odor-causing blue-green algae was a recurring problem until the water utility began to inject compressed air into the reservoir to cause destratification. This practice has successfully controlled the growth of algae, thereby simplifying treatment processes. Watershed management in combination with routine sampling and analyses further protects the quality of the raw water that serves the city. Includes 5 references, tables, figures.