Sewer Plant Saving Time and Money
Published on by WTP Operations Manager, Employee at Jobs and Scholarships in Technology
The new Brookfield wastewater treatment plant is both ahead of requirements set by the government, and has cost-saving features
The process of converting the sewage into usable water begins with the raw sewage coming into the plant. It is lifted into the first part of the site, where the non-fecal solids are removed. These solids are compacted and placed into dumpsters.
From here, the plant operators use a series of pools, where aeration and bacteria remove the pollutants from the sewage. The process uses its own bacteria to eat the other bacteria, and then removes the microbiological material leftovers, which are basically equivalent to fertilizer at that point.
A feature of the new site is the removal of phosphorus, which is an eye toward future requirements from the government.
Another concern for the water is ammonia. “Ammonia is a major issue that the EPA and the State of Missouri is focusing on,” said Griffin. “Water comes in at 12-15 mg/l of ammonia. It leaves our plant at 0.9 mg/l. The legal requirement is a 1.4 mg/l monthly average, which we are very far below.”
At the end of the process, ultraviolet lights are used to kill any remaining pathogens in the water.
“The water then runs out, and is treated by UV radiation, eliminating the pathogenic remnants in the water,” said Griffin. “Here is where we have the final product, clean water, that we release into West Yellow Creek. This is a full-body-contact stream, meaning that people swim and eat wildlife from it. We have to limit the e-coli content that naturally occurs, which is what the UV treatment helps with.”
Another money and time saving feature of the new plant is that the entire system is powered by air. This is using less electricity than the previous system, which had power on a constant basis. Time and money are also saved by the fact that the testing of the water is now done all in-house.
“Before, we did minimal in-house testing,” said Griffin. “All testing is now done on-site. This saves money for the city. We test for e-coli, phosphorus, ammonia, oxygen demand, everything. We even make our own lab-quality distilled water.”
The final cost-saving item at the new plant is the technology that allows for off-site monitoring of the system.
Source: Linn County Leader
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Taxonomy
- Wastewater Treatment
- Sewage
- Water & Wastewater