February 2014

www.tpomag.comFEBRUARY 2014

FARMLAND NEXT DOOR AIDS MOBERLY’S AWARD-WINNING BIOSOLIDS PROGRAMPAGE 34

to Home

In My Words: The Value of Water Coalition

PAGE 38

PlantScapes: Multiuse trail in

Eureka, Calif.PAGE 20

Ben RilesChief Operator

Moberly, Mo.

Close

How We Do It: Nutrient removal in Missoula, Mont.PAGE 30

4 TREATMENT PLANT OPERATOR

we’ve got this PistA Covered.istA Covered.ist

Smith & Loveless Inc.Above All Others.TM

Call 800.922.9048 visit smithandLoveless.com

don’t worry. we’ve got PACKAged grit reMovAL systems covered. the new PistA® Pro-PAK™ is smith & Loveless’ latest packaged innovation: factory-assembled PistA® internals pre-wired to grit pump and controls, all housed within a retractable fiberglass enclosure for quick and easy installation. the PistA® Pro-PAK™ not only lowers installation costs, but eliminates the need for heat tracing and weather-protective buildings. it’s coverage where it counts.

PRE-MOUNTED. PRE-WIRED. PRO-PAK™.BY S&L, THE WORLD LEADER IN GRIT REMOVAL .

®

A Covered.®

A Covered.

advertiser indexFEBRUARY 2014

Active Water Solutions, LLC ...... 18

Aerzen USA ................................... 17

AllMax Software, Inc. .................. 27

BASF Corporation – Water Solutions Division ....................... 3

BDP Industries, Inc. ...................... 45

Blue-White Industries ................. 4

Bright Technologies ..................... 54

Carylon Corporation ...................... 13

Centrisys Corporation ................. 32

Duperon Corporation ................... 33

Flo Trend Systems, Inc. ............... 53

Fournier Industries, Inc. ................ 39

Hawk Measurement America .... 26

Huber Technology, Inc. ............... 7

Infilco Degremont Inc. ................. 31

IPEC Consultants Ltd. .................. 21

JDV Equipment Corporation ...... 49

Keller America Inc. ....................... 43

Komline-Sanderson ..................... 11

Lakeside Equipment Corporation 55

McNish Corporation .................... 8

Noxon North America, Inc. ........ 21

Ovivo USA, LLC ............................ 2

Penn Valley Pump Co., Inc. ........... 25

Pollardwater.com ......................... 56

Pulsar Process Measurement Inc. 53

Roto-Mix, LLC ................................. 47

Schreiber LLC ................................ 27

Smith & Loveless, Inc. .................. 5

Vaughan Company, Inc. .............. 19

Walker Process Equipment .......... 45

Way Cool Product Co., LLC ........ 32

CLASSIFIEDS ................................ 45

www.facebook.com/TPOmagwww.twitter.com/TPOmagwww.plus.google.comwww.youtube.com/TPOmagazine

Get Social with �

It’s your magazine. Tell your story.Send your ideas for future articles

to [email protected]

Go to tpomag.comto view the e-zine.

we’ve got this PistA Covered.istA Covered.ist

Smith & Loveless Inc.Above All Others.TM

Call 800.922.9048 visit smithandLoveless.com

don’t worry. we’ve got PACKAged grit reMovAL systems covered. the new PistA® Pro-PAK™ is smith & Loveless’ latest packaged innovation: factory-assembled PistA® internals pre-wired to grit pump and controls, all housed within a retractable fiberglass enclosure for quick and easy installation. the PistA® Pro-PAK™ not only lowers installation costs, but eliminates the need for heat tracing and weather-protective buildings. it’s coverage where it counts.

PRE-MOUNTED. PRE-WIRED. PRO-PAK™.BY S&L, THE WORLD LEADER IN GRIT REMOVAL .

®

A Covered.®

A Covered.

advertiser indexFEBRUARY 2014

Active Water Solutions, LLC ...... 18

Aerzen USA ................................... 17

AllMax Software, Inc. .................. 27

BASF Corporation – Water Solutions Division ....................... 3

BDP Industries, Inc. ...................... 45

Blue-White Industries ................. 4

Bright Technologies ..................... 54

Carylon Corporation ...................... 13

Centrisys Corporation ................. 32

Duperon Corporation ................... 33

Flo Trend Systems, Inc. ............... 53

Fournier Industries, Inc. ................ 39

Hawk Measurement America .... 26

Huber Technology, Inc. ............... 7

Infilco Degremont Inc. ................. 31

IPEC Consultants Ltd. .................. 21

JDV Equipment Corporation ...... 49

Keller America Inc. ....................... 43

Komline-Sanderson ..................... 11

Lakeside Equipment Corporation 55

McNish Corporation .................... 8

Noxon North America, Inc. ........ 21

Ovivo USA, LLC ............................ 2

Penn Valley Pump Co., Inc. ........... 25

Pollardwater.com ......................... 56

Pulsar Process Measurement Inc. 53

Roto-Mix, LLC ................................. 47

Schreiber LLC ................................ 27

Smith & Loveless, Inc. .................. 5

Vaughan Company, Inc. .............. 19

Walker Process Equipment .......... 45

Way Cool Product Co., LLC ........ 32

CLASSIFIEDS ................................ 45

www.facebook.com/TPOmagwww.twitter.com/TPOmagwww.plus.google.comwww.youtube.com/TPOmagazine

Get Social with �

It’s your magazine. Tell your story.Send your ideas for future articles

to [email protected]


contents February 2014

COMING NEXT MONTH: MARCH 2014

Product Focus: Pumpsn Top Performer – Plant: Lagoon system excellence in Lincoln, Mo.n Top Performer – Operator: Katie Goin, Cumberland, Wis.n Top Performer – Biosolids: Award-winning program in Stowe, Vt.n How We Do It: Ballasted biological treatment in Allenstown, N.H.n Greening the Plant: Targeting energy neutrality in Pittsfield, Mass.n Hearts and Minds: Statewide poster contest in Mainen PlantScapes: Trail building in Great Falls, Mont.

departments 8 LET’S BE CLEAR: CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION? Clean-water plants find ways to mark special occasions, including

those not directly connected with water quality and environmental awareness.By Ted J. Rulseh, Editor

9 FIRE CHIEF PROJECT IDEA OF THE MONTH: COME IN IF YOU DARE …By Ted J. Rulseh

10 LETTERS 12 @TPOMAG.COM Visit daily for news, features and blogs. Get the most from TPO magazine.

32 INDUSTRY NEWS

40 PRODUCT FOCUS: BIOSOLIDS MANAGEMENT/HEADWORKSBy Craig Mandli

46 CASE STUDIES: BIOSOLIDS MANAGEMENT/HEADWORKSBy Craig Mandli

50 PRODUCT NEWS Product Spotlight: Polymer-saving THK thickening centrifuge

By Ed Wodalski

52 WORTH NOTING People/Awards; Education; Calendar of Events

on the coverThe City of Moberly, Mo., began land-applying biosolids on area farms in 1987. Ten years later the operation moved to city-owned Wastewater Farm, now home to an award-winning program led by Ben Riles, chief operator of the wastewater treatment plant. (Photography by David Owens)

34

features 14 TOP PERFORMER – BIOSOLIDS: TWO WAYS GREEN A New York community devises an alternative biosolids management

process that eliminates incinerator emissions and yields substantial cost savings.By Pete Litterski

20 PLANTSCAPES: KEEPERS OF THE REFUGE Operators at a coastal California treatment plant help maintain an

impressive wetland area that includes a multiuse public trail.By Jeff Smith

22 TOP PERFORMER – OPERATOR: RIGHT AT HOME John Leonhard gave up life as a traveling trainer and technician to lead a

skilled plant team and ultimately supervise a brand new regional facility.By Ted J. Rulseh

28 GREENING THE PLANT: CHALLENGE MET The treatment plant in Edmonds, Wash., racks up big savings and earns

utility incentives with a wide range of energy-saving projects.By Scottie Dayton

30 HOW WE DO IT: INNOVATION IN BNR Missoula plant effluent cleansed of most nutrients will soon water

130 acres of poplar trees grown to maturity and harvested for saw logs.By Grant Weaver

34 TOP PERFORMER – BIOSOLIDS: CLOSE TO HOME Farmland next to the wastewater treatment plant is part of the recipe

for an award-winning biosolids program in Moberly, Mo.By Pete Litterski

38 IN MY WORDS: ONE VOICE A broad-based coalition of industry associations and businesses aims

to raise the profile of infrastructure investment as a national priority.By Ted J. Rulseh

48 HEARTS AND MINDS: LEARNING PLACE A vacant administration building becomes a world-class environmental

education center with LEED certification.By Linda J. Edmonson

34

14

22

38


Special days come many times a year. Do you find ways to cele-brate them in your community?

Many clean-water plant teams do.Earth Day (April 22) is a natural.

So is World Water Monitoring Day (Sept. 18). And World Water Day (March 22). And Protect Your Ground-water Day. There are others.

And yet those (with the excep-tion of Earth Day) don’t resonate too much with the broad general public. Most people don’t know they exist, let alone when they fall. So how do you forge connections with special days most people do recognize? And is it worthwhile to try? It might be hard to see connec-tions between clean water and tra-

ditional holidays, but some creative clean-water plants have forged them.

CASES IN POINT

This issue of TPO highlights a Fire Chief Project Idea of the Month in which a sanitary district in northern Kentucky conducted special treatment plant tours near Halloween. This wasn’t a haunted house where the lights are turned off, walls and furniture are festooned with spider webs and peo-ple dress up in eerie costumes to scare kids.

No, this was about all the scary things that can wreck treatment plant performance, like FOG and disposable wipes. It’s also about what would happen if the treatment plant was not there: Things like undrinkable, foul-smelling water, dead fish, and outbreaks of cholera and dysentery are scary indeed.

Then there’s New York City, where for the past two years Jim Pynn and the team at the Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant have held special Valentine’s Day tours. The highlight was a visit to the 120-foot-high observation deck atop the plant’s egg digesters — it offers a spectacular view of the city. Those attending (mostly couples) received Hershey’s Kisses chocolates.

let’s be clear

Cause for Celebration?CLEAN-WATER PLANTS FIND WAYS TO MARK SPECIAL OCCASIONS, INCLUDING THOSE NOT DIRECTLY CONNECTED WITH WATER QUALITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS

By Ted J. Rulseh, Editor

DEDICATED TO MUNICIPAL WASTEWATER PROFESSIONALS

Published monthly by COLE Publishing, Inc.1720 Maple Lake Dam Rd., PO Box 220, Three Lakes, WI 54562

Call toll free 800-257-7222 / Outside of U.S. or Canada call 715-546-3346Mon.-Fri., 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. CST

Website: www.tpomag.com / Email: [email protected] / Fax: 715-546-3786

SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION: A one year (12 issues) subscription to TPOTM in the United States and Canada is FREE to qualified subscribers. A qualified subscriber is any individual or company in the United States or Canada that partakes in the consulting, design, installa-tion, manufacture, management or operation of wastewater treatment facilities. To subscribe, return the subscription card attached to each issue, visit tpomag.com or call 800-257-7222.

Non-qualified subscriptions are available at a cost of $60 per year in the United States and Canada/Mexico and $150 per year to all other foreign countries. To subscribe, visit tpomag.com or send company name, mailing address, phone number and check or money order (U.S. funds payable to COLE Publishing Inc.) to the address above. MasterCard, VISA and Discover are also accepted. Include credit card information with your order.

ADDRESS CHANGES: Submit to TPO, P.O. Box 220, Three Lakes, WI, 54562; call 800-257-7222 (715-546-3346); fax to 715-546-3786; or email [email protected]. Include both old and new addresses.

Our subscriber list is occasionally made available to carefully selected companies whose products or services may be of interest to you. Your privacy is important to us. If you prefer not to be a part of these lists, please contact Nicole at [email protected].

ADVERTISING RATES: Call 800-994-7990 and ask for Phil or Kim. Publisher reserves the right to reject advertising which in its opinion is misleading, unfair or incompatible with the character of the publication.

EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENCE: Address to Editor, TPO, P.O. Box 220, Three Lakes, WI, 54562 or email [email protected].

REPRINTS AND BACK ISSUES: Visit www.tpomag.com for options and pricing. To order reprints, call Jeff Lane at 800-257-7222 (715-546-3346) or email [email protected]. To order back issues, call Nicole at 800-257-7222 (715-546-3346) or email nicolel@cole publishing.com.

CIRCULATION: 75,345 copies per month.

© 2014 COLE PUBLISHING INC. No part may be reproduced without permission of publisher.

CIRCULAR CLARIFIER DRIVES

Direct From FactoryAurora, IL USA

www.mcnishcorp.com

FAR AND WIDEYou might ask: How many people would attend such

events? And maybe the numbers aren’t huge. But that’s not the whole point. The Valentine’s Day tours at Newtown Creek got publicity across the country and worldwide, in print, on TV and online. And that was a huge opportunity to tell what treatment plants really do — which is make clean water.

The Halloween tours were also well publicized and would be easy for treatment plants around the country to replicate for their communities.

So how could you create an event to mark some special day on the calendar? Fourth of July? Definitely a float in the

local parade, but how about something at the treatment plant too, on or around the Fourth? Some sort of water festival with “water fireworks” supplied by the fire department?

Thanksgiving? How about a display of things to be thank-ful for that relate to water: Fish in the receiving stream, clean swimming areas, abundant wildlife, healthy families.

Easter? You probably wouldn’t want to compete with the community egg hunt on Saturday or Sunday, but the week-end before the holiday is clear. A plant tour featuring baskets of goodies for kids? There’s a lot about wastewater treatment that speaks to the Easter themes of rebirth and renewal. Any-way, you get the idea.

IS IT A STRETCH?

Am I “pushing it” here? Maybe so, but then who thought something like New York’s Valentine’s Day tours would be the success they have become? A little creativity can go a long way.

What have you done in the line of creative special events at your clean-water plant? Share your experiences by sending a note to [email protected]. I promise to respond, and I’ll report on your successes in an upcoming issue of TPO.

You might ask: How many people would

attend such events? And maybe the numbers

aren’t huge. But that’s not the whole point.

The Valentine’s Day tours at Newtown Creek

got publicity across the country and worldwide,

in print, on TV and online.

“We’re met with a new challenge each day.Whether it’s the sewer or water department ...we take our jobs very seriously, andthe key thing is knowing that we’re incompliance and not polluting our waters.”

Jeff ChartierAn Original Environmentalist

SUPERINTENDENTTown of Bristol (N.H.) Sewer

and Water Department

Every day is Earth Day.™

Read about original environmentalists like Jeffeach month in Treatment Plant Operator.

FREE subscription at www.tpomag.com

tpomag.com February 2014 9

Special days come many times a year. Do you find ways to cele-brate them in your community?

Many clean-water plant teams do.Earth Day (April 22) is a natural.

So is World Water Monitoring Day (Sept. 18). And World Water Day (March 22). And Protect Your Ground-water Day. There are others.

And yet those (with the excep-tion of Earth Day) don’t resonate too much with the broad general public. Most people don’t know they exist, let alone when they fall. So how do you forge connections with special days most people do recognize? And is it worthwhile to try? It might be hard to see connec-tions between clean water and tra-

ditional holidays, but some creative clean-water plants have forged them.

CASES IN POINT

This issue of TPO highlights a Fire Chief Project Idea of the Month in which a sanitary district in northern Kentucky conducted special treatment plant tours near Halloween. This wasn’t a haunted house where the lights are turned off, walls and furniture are festooned with spider webs and peo-ple dress up in eerie costumes to scare kids.

No, this was about all the scary things that can wreck treatment plant performance, like FOG and disposable wipes. It’s also about what would happen if the treatment plant was not there: Things like undrinkable, foul-smelling water, dead fish, and outbreaks of cholera and dysentery are scary indeed.

Then there’s New York City, where for the past two years Jim Pynn and the team at the Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant have held special Valentine’s Day tours. The highlight was a visit to the 120-foot-high observation deck atop the plant’s egg digesters — it offers a spectacular view of the city. Those attending (mostly couples) received Hershey’s Kisses chocolates.

let’s be clear

Cause for Celebration?CLEAN-WATER PLANTS FIND WAYS TO MARK SPECIAL OCCASIONS, INCLUDING THOSE NOT DIRECTLY CONNECTED WITH WATER QUALITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS

By Ted J. Rulseh, Editor

DEDICATED TO MUNICIPAL WASTEWATER PROFESSIONALS

Published monthly by COLE Publishing, Inc.1720 Maple Lake Dam Rd., PO Box 220, Three Lakes, WI 54562

Call toll free 800-257-7222 / Outside of U.S. or Canada call 715-546-3346Mon.-Fri., 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. CST

Website: www.tpomag.com / Email: [email protected] / Fax: 715-546-3786

SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION: A one year (12 issues) subscription to TPOTM in the United States and Canada is FREE to qualified subscribers. A qualified subscriber is any individual or company in the United States or Canada that partakes in the consulting, design, installa-tion, manufacture, management or operation of wastewater treatment facilities. To subscribe, return the subscription card attached to each issue, visit tpomag.com or call 800-257-7222.

Non-qualified subscriptions are available at a cost of $60 per year in the United States and Canada/Mexico and $150 per year to all other foreign countries. To subscribe, visit tpomag.com or send company name, mailing address, phone number and check or money order (U.S. funds payable to COLE Publishing Inc.) to the address above. MasterCard, VISA and Discover are also accepted. Include credit card information with your order.

ADDRESS CHANGES: Submit to TPO, P.O. Box 220, Three Lakes, WI, 54562; call 800-257-7222 (715-546-3346); fax to 715-546-3786; or email [email protected]. Include both old and new addresses.

Our subscriber list is occasionally made available to carefully selected companies whose products or services may be of interest to you. Your privacy is important to us. If you prefer not to be a part of these lists, please contact Nicole at [email protected].

ADVERTISING RATES: Call 800-994-7990 and ask for Phil or Kim. Publisher reserves the right to reject advertising which in its opinion is misleading, unfair or incompatible with the character of the publication.

EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENCE: Address to Editor, TPO, P.O. Box 220, Three Lakes, WI, 54562 or email [email protected].

REPRINTS AND BACK ISSUES: Visit www.tpomag.com for options and pricing. To order reprints, call Jeff Lane at 800-257-7222 (715-546-3346) or email [email protected]. To order back issues, call Nicole at 800-257-7222 (715-546-3346) or email nicolel@cole publishing.com.

CIRCULATION: 75,345 copies per month.

© 2014 COLE PUBLISHING INC. No part may be reproduced without permission of publisher.

FAR AND WIDEYou might ask: How many people would attend such

events? And maybe the numbers aren’t huge. But that’s not the whole point. The Valentine’s Day tours at Newtown Creek got publicity across the country and worldwide, in print, on TV and online. And that was a huge opportunity to tell what treatment plants really do — which is make clean water.

The Halloween tours were also well publicized and would be easy for treatment plants around the country to replicate for their communities.

So how could you create an event to mark some special day on the calendar? Fourth of July? Definitely a float in the

local parade, but how about something at the treatment plant too, on or around the Fourth? Some sort of water festival with “water fireworks” supplied by the fire department?

Thanksgiving? How about a display of things to be thank-ful for that relate to water: Fish in the receiving stream, clean swimming areas, abundant wildlife, healthy families.

Easter? You probably wouldn’t want to compete with the community egg hunt on Saturday or Sunday, but the week-end before the holiday is clear. A plant tour featuring baskets of goodies for kids? There’s a lot about wastewater treatment that speaks to the Easter themes of rebirth and renewal. Any-way, you get the idea.

IS IT A STRETCH?

Am I “pushing it” here? Maybe so, but then who thought something like New York’s Valentine’s Day tours would be the success they have become? A little creativity can go a long way.

What have you done in the line of creative special events at your clean-water plant? Share your experiences by sending a note to [email protected]. I promise to respond, and I’ll report on your successes in an upcoming issue of TPO.

You might ask: How many people would

attend such events? And maybe the numbers

aren’t huge. But that’s not the whole point.

The Valentine’s Day tours at Newtown Creek

got publicity across the country and worldwide,

in print, on TV and online.

“We’re met with a new challenge each day.Whether it’s the sewer or water department ...we take our jobs very seriously, andthe key thing is knowing that we’re incompliance and not polluting our waters.”

Jeff ChartierAn Original Environmentalist

SUPERINTENDENTTown of Bristol (N.H.) Sewer

and Water Department

Every day is Earth Day.™

Read about original environmentalists like Jeffeach month in Treatment Plant Operator.

FREE subscription at www.tpomag.com

IDEA OF THE MONTH:

Come in if You Dare ...By Ted J. Rulseh

Halloween and wastewater treatment. There doesn’t seem to be much connection — until you think about it a little.

For one, all kinds of scary things can happen at clean-water plants if home and business owners dump or flush things they shouldn’t — like fryer grease and baby wipes. And imag-ine the scary things that would happen if the plant were not there — cholera, dysen-tery, filthy water, dead fish, horrible smells.

The team at the Dry Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, operated by Sanitary Dis-trict No. 1 (SD1) in Villa Hills, Ky., aimed to get those messages across to its public with special Halloween tours last October. Joe Baxter, manager of the 33 mgd (average flow) plant, noted, “We wanted a creative way to get important information out to the customers about wastewater treatment and what is all involved. We wanted to do it in a fun and interactive way.”

Props and decorations, including cobwebs draping the newly updated laboratory, created a Halloween atmosphere as visitors viewed various plant processes. Baxter led the tours along with Sarah Griffiths, pretreatment manager; John Clark, director of operations; and a retired district employee. Kids received “Trick or Treatment” goodie bags.

“People in this industry are always looking for a positive way to get the message out to the general public,” says Baxter. “This seems like a really good venue to do that. You can never be too creative to get people to come into your facility because that’s sometimes the best way to educate. They come in and see a nice, clean facility run by professionals, and it just makes the experience that much better.”

It’s the kind of event that helps further the aims of the Fire Chief Project:• Raise clean-water operators to the stature of the fire chief• Make kids grow up wanting to be clean-water operators

Visit The Fire Chief Project blog at www.tpomag.comSend ideas for The Fire Chief Project to [email protected]

FIRE CHIEF

PROJECTTH

E


Wastewater training on the inside

Greetings from the Department of Corrections in sunny Florida. I am a longtime TPO/WSO reader and subscriber who also operates water and wastewater facilities for the Department of Corrections. I’m also a prisoner (we prefer the term “freedom-impaired”) until 2017.

I (with all my fellow operators, trainees and our supervisors) read your piece about prisoners and water careers [“Building a Bridge,” TPO, October 2013] and was exceedingly happy to see someone addressing the issue. Thanks a million for having an open mind and not being afraid to use it. I would like to give you some inside information (no pun intended).

Obtaining training and rehabilitation in Florida’s Department of Correc-tions is nearly impossible. Contrary to popular belief, DOC does not want to see prisoners succeed. Sure, there are a few folks who are exceptions to the rule, but overall, it is an uphill battle for us. Luckily, most of us love to over-come great challenges and thrive on doing what others say can’t be done.

My coworkers and I paid for our own education (California State Univer-sity, Sacramento), our testing (Florida Department of Environmental Protec-tion) and our CEUs. DOC gave us nothing but grief. We’ve been transferred all over the state to get the hours needed to activate our licenses. Studying is a challenge in and of itself. Ultimately, we overcame it all, and now we are at a facility (Charlotte Correctional Institution) that has an abundance of staff who care and are supportive.

Our current environment (stabbing, gang wars and rapes aside) is very conducive to learning. We realize we’re the underdogs, so we train harder and set our standards higher. We hand-pick prisoners for our custom train-ing and, with our supervisor’s approval, we begin creating uber-operators. Some of our predecessors have graced the pages of TPO/WSO and we’ve beaten out municipalities to win awards on a fraction of their budgets.

We would be very happy to host you and provide a firsthand look at the face of prison operations. Not to worry: Our plants are off the compound and staffed with minimum-custody prisoners. We sincerely appreciate your peri-odicals and your honest insight. In the future you will see more ex-prisoners entering the field and carrying the standard.

Of course, we understand that each new day presents new challenges, but that’s just business as usual for us. Thanks for taking the time to read this and for putting out such a high-quality periodical.

Sincerely,William E. SiebertWater/Wastewater OperatorCharlotte Correctional InstitutionPunta Gorda, Fla.

Looking for a new start

I am writing in response to the topic you wrote about concerning the employment of prisoners after their release. Thank you so much for address-ing an issue that is very important to me.

I am 34 years old. I am incarcerated for a crime I committed when I was 16. I never had a job in society. I am taking the opportunity to learn as much as I can while I am in here about water treatment. I am about 300 hours away from activating my Class C wastewater treatment plant operator’s license. I have also completed all of the required course work and passed the state exam for the Florida Class C drinking water plant operator’s license.

I had to overcome a lot of hurdles in here to go as far as I have with my education. Unfortunately, I know I will have to endure a lot more to secure employment after my release in 15 months. I look forward to the challenge of starting life over. I am also looking forward to reading the responses to your

article. It may give me some insight into where to seek employment.I have already collected a lot of contact information from TPO on employ-

ers I plan on sending my resume to before my release. Once again, thank you for your article.

Jofre MillerDeSoto Work CampArcadia, Fla.

Decisions to change

In response to your October column, we as Marion Correctional Institu-tion environmental wastewater students appreciate your concerns about people like us. We are very fortunate to have a field like wastewater in which to start a career and upon release give most of us a new beginning.

Our wastewater vocational program is designed and furnished with the best licensed instructors, lab equipment and books approved by the Sacra-mento programs. We are trained biweekly at a 0.5 mgd extended aeration plant by a Class A licensed operator instructor to attain on-the-job training to activate our class C license.

We are excited about the environmental field and are aware of employ-ers’ concerns about hiring ex-felons. We know that the results of tomorrow reflect on the choices you make today and only ask to be given another chance. We’ve all made past mistakes, and with the time lost away from soci-ety and our families, we’ve made a decision to change.

This program has given us the opportunity to better ourselves for the future and also the self-worth to give back to society through the environ-mental field to help create a better world to live in for us all. We hope pro-spective employers will give us an opportunity to contribute to the exciting water field.

William WheatRobert StowellFritz St. FleurantMarion Correctional Institution, Ocala, Fla.

An instructor’s perspective

I teach a water treatment training program at a state prison in Florida. Successful completion of the program earns students a certificate that allows them to sit for the Florida state Department of Environmental Protection test while still in prison.

In order to become a C licensed operator, the student must accumulate one year of work experience, which may not be feasible during incarceration. In your editorial, inmate James Blackford focused upon the “stigma of being felons” and the “critical question” on job applications that asks: Have you ever been convicted of a felony?

Frankly, it does not matter if that question is on a job application or not. Little in the way of time or money is required to do a background check on a job applicant. The Internet allows easy access to information about our lives that, in times past, might have been considered private and confidential.

Answering the “critical question” honestly and stating that details will become available during the interview process is a reasonable approach. It is best to assume that the potential employer has a complete record of time spent in prison along with a listing of places worked in the past.

It is essential for applicants to provide honest (not necessarily in-depth) answers to all questions on an employment application. False statements

letters

may prevent receiving an invitation to interview, and, if discovered later, may result in loss of employment.

You asked: What happens to the trainees when they are released and look for work in the clean-water field? In my experience, most of them find and enjoy employment in this satisfying and important profession.

An important resource for job hunters is the perennial best seller, What Color is Your Parachute? The author, Richard N. Bolles, has great empathy for those seeking employment. With friendly humor and sage advice, he pro-vides practical information. To answer a felon’s concern about possibly being rejected for employment, he states: “You are not looking for employers who will not hire felons; you are looking for employers who will hire felons.”

He emphasizes the need to put in a full 40-hour week to hunt for a job. Most job seekers find the process so stressful that they typically put in only a few hours of job hunting each day; certainly not 40 hours each week.

My experience as a certified vocational teacher and as a supervisor of treatment plant operations at five state prisons reveals that about half who enter a vocational program actually enter the workforce as a treatment plant operator. Those who show the initiative to learn the field read the textbooks for more than being able to answer the test questions, and they acquire the desire to know more about the occupation. Their attitude reflects that and will be evident in a job interview.

Last year a human resources representative in a distant state telephoned me in regard to a man formerly in my classroom who was seeking employ-ment with her company. I asked, “Are you reluctant to hire a former inmate?”

“Not at all,” she replied. “The best-educated operators come from the prisons. I just want your opinion of his character.” Virtually all my students who completed the courses and developed appreciation for the vital nature of our work are now employed as operators.

One man in his 50s who spent several decades in prison and whose cus-tody prevented him from even seeing a treatment plant went on to become the lead operator at a small municipal plant after his release.

Another who needed experience hours to activate his license left prison

to live in a very small town. Told that “someone will have to die before we can hire you,” he worked as a volunteer for one year without pay to gain the needed hours, supporting himself by working the night shift at a pizzeria. He is now a dual licensed operator enjoying good pay and satisfying work.

A former inmate who was able to obtain his experience hours while in prison and activate both his wastewater and drinking water licenses had dif-ficulty obtaining employment. Working for over a year in a yogurt shop and then at near minimum wage servicing lift stations did not dampen his spirits. Finally hired to run a lime softening plant, he used his spare time to visit sim-ilar treatment plants and ask for advice on running his own plant.

After a year he applied to a large county with a reputation of never hiring felons. When they called the plants he had visited on his free time, the oper-ators told them, “You would be making a mistake if you didn’t hire him.” He was hired and is doing so well that he is now being groomed for supervision.

Lastly, I would like to say that the opinions expressed are mine alone and are not necessarily those of the Florida Department of Corrections or Marion Correctional Institution.

Thomas J. WillardMarion Correctional InstitutionOcala, Fla.

TPO welcomes news about your municipal wastewater operation for future articles.

Send your ideas to [email protected] or call 715/277-4094

It’s your magazine. Tell your story.


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Pump. Thicken. Dewater. Dry.Wastewater training on the inside

Greetings from the Department of Corrections in sunny Florida. I am a longtime TPO/WSO reader and subscriber who also operates water and wastewater facilities for the Department of Corrections. I’m also a prisoner (we prefer the term “freedom-impaired”) until 2017.

I (with all my fellow operators, trainees and our supervisors) read your piece about prisoners and water careers [“Building a Bridge,” TPO, October 2013] and was exceedingly happy to see someone addressing the issue. Thanks a million for having an open mind and not being afraid to use it. I would like to give you some inside information (no pun intended).

Obtaining training and rehabilitation in Florida’s Department of Correc-tions is nearly impossible. Contrary to popular belief, DOC does not want to see prisoners succeed. Sure, there are a few folks who are exceptions to the rule, but overall, it is an uphill battle for us. Luckily, most of us love to over-come great challenges and thrive on doing what others say can’t be done.

My coworkers and I paid for our own education (California State Univer-sity, Sacramento), our testing (Florida Department of Environmental Protec-tion) and our CEUs. DOC gave us nothing but grief. We’ve been transferred all over the state to get the hours needed to activate our licenses. Studying is a challenge in and of itself. Ultimately, we overcame it all, and now we are at a facility (Charlotte Correctional Institution) that has an abundance of staff who care and are supportive.

Our current environment (stabbing, gang wars and rapes aside) is very conducive to learning. We realize we’re the underdogs, so we train harder and set our standards higher. We hand-pick prisoners for our custom train-ing and, with our supervisor’s approval, we begin creating uber-operators. Some of our predecessors have graced the pages of TPO/WSO and we’ve beaten out municipalities to win awards on a fraction of their budgets.

We would be very happy to host you and provide a firsthand look at the face of prison operations. Not to worry: Our plants are off the compound and staffed with minimum-custody prisoners. We sincerely appreciate your peri-odicals and your honest insight. In the future you will see more ex-prisoners entering the field and carrying the standard.

Of course, we understand that each new day presents new challenges, but that’s just business as usual for us. Thanks for taking the time to read this and for putting out such a high-quality periodical.

Sincerely,William E. SiebertWater/Wastewater OperatorCharlotte Correctional InstitutionPunta Gorda, Fla.

Looking for a new start

I am writing in response to the topic you wrote about concerning the employment of prisoners after their release. Thank you so much for address-ing an issue that is very important to me.

I am 34 years old. I am incarcerated for a crime I committed when I was 16. I never had a job in society. I am taking the opportunity to learn as much as I can while I am in here about water treatment. I am about 300 hours away from activating my Class C wastewater treatment plant operator’s license. I have also completed all of the required course work and passed the state exam for the Florida Class C drinking water plant operator’s license.

I had to overcome a lot of hurdles in here to go as far as I have with my education. Unfortunately, I know I will have to endure a lot more to secure employment after my release in 15 months. I look forward to the challenge of starting life over. I am also looking forward to reading the responses to your

article. It may give me some insight into where to seek employment.I have already collected a lot of contact information from TPO on employ-

ers I plan on sending my resume to before my release. Once again, thank you for your article.

Jofre MillerDeSoto Work CampArcadia, Fla.

Decisions to change

In response to your October column, we as Marion Correctional Institu-tion environmental wastewater students appreciate your concerns about people like us. We are very fortunate to have a field like wastewater in which to start a career and upon release give most of us a new beginning.

Our wastewater vocational program is designed and furnished with the best licensed instructors, lab equipment and books approved by the Sacra-mento programs. We are trained biweekly at a 0.5 mgd extended aeration plant by a Class A licensed operator instructor to attain on-the-job training to activate our class C license.

We are excited about the environmental field and are aware of employ-ers’ concerns about hiring ex-felons. We know that the results of tomorrow reflect on the choices you make today and only ask to be given another chance. We’ve all made past mistakes, and with the time lost away from soci-ety and our families, we’ve made a decision to change.

This program has given us the opportunity to better ourselves for the future and also the self-worth to give back to society through the environ-mental field to help create a better world to live in for us all. We hope pro-spective employers will give us an opportunity to contribute to the exciting water field.

William WheatRobert StowellFritz St. FleurantMarion Correctional Institution, Ocala, Fla.

An instructor’s perspective

I teach a water treatment training program at a state prison in Florida. Successful completion of the program earns students a certificate that allows them to sit for the Florida state Department of Environmental Protection test while still in prison.

In order to become a C licensed operator, the student must accumulate one year of work experience, which may not be feasible during incarceration. In your editorial, inmate James Blackford focused upon the “stigma of being felons” and the “critical question” on job applications that asks: Have you ever been convicted of a felony?

Frankly, it does not matter if that question is on a job application or not. Little in the way of time or money is required to do a background check on a job applicant. The Internet allows easy access to information about our lives that, in times past, might have been considered private and confidential.

Answering the “critical question” honestly and stating that details will become available during the interview process is a reasonable approach. It is best to assume that the potential employer has a complete record of time spent in prison along with a listing of places worked in the past.

It is essential for applicants to provide honest (not necessarily in-depth) answers to all questions on an employment application. False statements

letters

may prevent receiving an invitation to interview, and, if discovered later, may result in loss of employment.

You asked: What happens to the trainees when they are released and look for work in the clean-water field? In my experience, most of them find and enjoy employment in this satisfying and important profession.

An important resource for job hunters is the perennial best seller, What Color is Your Parachute? The author, Richard N. Bolles, has great empathy for those seeking employment. With friendly humor and sage advice, he pro-vides practical information. To answer a felon’s concern about possibly being rejected for employment, he states: “You are not looking for employers who will not hire felons; you are looking for employers who will hire felons.”

He emphasizes the need to put in a full 40-hour week to hunt for a job. Most job seekers find the process so stressful that they typically put in only a few hours of job hunting each day; certainly not 40 hours each week.

My experience as a certified vocational teacher and as a supervisor of treatment plant operations at five state prisons reveals that about half who enter a vocational program actually enter the workforce as a treatment plant operator. Those who show the initiative to learn the field read the textbooks for more than being able to answer the test questions, and they acquire the desire to know more about the occupation. Their attitude reflects that and will be evident in a job interview.

Last year a human resources representative in a distant state telephoned me in regard to a man formerly in my classroom who was seeking employ-ment with her company. I asked, “Are you reluctant to hire a former inmate?”

“Not at all,” she replied. “The best-educated operators come from the prisons. I just want your opinion of his character.” Virtually all my students who completed the courses and developed appreciation for the vital nature of our work are now employed as operators.

One man in his 50s who spent several decades in prison and whose cus-tody prevented him from even seeing a treatment plant went on to become the lead operator at a small municipal plant after his release.

Another who needed experience hours to activate his license left prison

to live in a very small town. Told that “someone will have to die before we can hire you,” he worked as a volunteer for one year without pay to gain the needed hours, supporting himself by working the night shift at a pizzeria. He is now a dual licensed operator enjoying good pay and satisfying work.

A former inmate who was able to obtain his experience hours while in prison and activate both his wastewater and drinking water licenses had dif-ficulty obtaining employment. Working for over a year in a yogurt shop and then at near minimum wage servicing lift stations did not dampen his spirits. Finally hired to run a lime softening plant, he used his spare time to visit sim-ilar treatment plants and ask for advice on running his own plant.

After a year he applied to a large county with a reputation of never hiring felons. When they called the plants he had visited on his free time, the oper-ators told them, “You would be making a mistake if you didn’t hire him.” He was hired and is doing so well that he is now being groomed for supervision.

Lastly, I would like to say that the opinions expressed are mine alone and are not necessarily those of the Florida Department of Corrections or Marion Correctional Institution.

Thomas J. WillardMarion Correctional InstitutionOcala, Fla.

TPO welcomes news about your municipal wastewater operation for future articles.

Send your ideas to [email protected] or call 715/277-4094

It’s your magazine. Tell your story.


@tpomag.com

Visit the site daily for new, exclusive content. Read our blogs, find resources and get the most out of TPO magazine.

COLD, COLDER, COLDEST

Prepare for Plummeting TempsFrom snowy roofs to ice-covered ladders, winter creates its own mix of problems for water and wastewater treatment plants. Take a few lessons from plants in cold-weather climes, and find out how a little preparation can save your plant time and money during snow season. www.tpomag.com/featured

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Secrets to Facility AwardsDo you dream of winning a treatment plant award? If that’s the case, these tips and pieces of advice are a must-read. Find out what’s important when submitting a nomination (Hint: Get it in on time!), and learn what other plant managers recommend when entering any competition. www.tpomag.com/featured

top performer: BIOSOLIDS

A NEW YORK COMMUNITY DEVISES AN ALTERNATIVE BIOSOLIDS MANAGEMENT PROCESS THAT ELIMINATES INCINERATOR EMISSIONS AND YIELDS SUBSTANTIAL COST SAVINGS

By Pete Litterski

Two WaysGreen

The Little Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant uses a Bio-tower trickling filter system, shown at the right. (Photography by Kirsten Celo)

FACING NEW U.S. EPA AIR-QUALITY STANDARDS THAT would require major upgrades at the city’s biosolids incinerator, leaders in Little Falls, N.Y., in 2012 asked the wastewater treatment plant team to study all options before moving ahead.

A consultant study estimated the cost of bringing the incinerator into compliance at up to $6.2 million. City leaders wanted to know if there was a more cost-effective solution. For Sam Ostasz, chief operator at the treatment plant, the challenge became an opportunity to cap off a four-decade career with a project that turned green in more ways than one.

Ostasz and his colleagues thought they “could come up with something better” than upgrading the 40-year-old oil-fired incinerator. Working with a local consultant, Jim Palmer, they developed a plan that required a much smaller initial investment, significantly reduced the treatment plant’s operat-ing costs and eliminated incinerator emissions.

Palmer coordinated replacement of the incinerator with a new system that takes dewatered biosolids by conveyor to a new building, where the material is deposited in trailers owned by WeCare Organics. The company hauls the material to rural Pennsylvania, where it is used to help reclaim land scraped bare by strip mining.

TEAM EFFORT

Palmer, a Little Falls native, credits Ostasz and other city employees for helping turn the potentially costly project into an efficient cost-saving pro-cess. “We used the talents of public works employees for the construction, the excavation and most of the work put into this,” he recalls. The project involved installation of a conveyor system (Martin Sprocket & Gear) from the treatment plant’s dewatering press to a shed where WeCare Organics parks its trailers.

The contract with WeCare calls for biosolids containing at least 20 per-cent solids — an easy target since the material was already running about 30 to 35 percent solids. Even so, Ostasz wanted to know if the city needed to upgrade or replace its 1-meter belt press (BDP Industries). A consultant from the manufacturer inspected the operation. “He told us we didn’t need to buy another press,” says Ostasz.

Instead, he proposed a six-year rehabilitation program that would extend the press’s life for another 20 years. Instead of spreading the project over six years, however, Ostasz chose full rehabilitation to prepare for the new bio-solids program. “We replaced probably 90 percent of the rollers, and where we replaced rollers, we also replaced bearings,” he says. When the work was complete the press was delivering material at 35 to 40 percent solids.

Between the conveyor, the new building and the press upgrade, the total project cost the city about $200,000 by the time it was dedicated in April 2013. “We didn’t have to bond for anything,” Palmer says.

POPULATION SERVED: 4,900

PLANT FLOWS: 7 mgd design, 5 mgd average

PLANT PROCESS: Bio-tower trickling filter

BIOSOLIDS PROCESS: Gravity settling tanks/belt press dewatering

BIOSOLIDS VOLUME: 2,500 wet tons/year

BIOSOLIDS USE: Hauled by contractor for mine site reclamation

STAFF: Chief Operator Sam Ostasz, Assistant Chief Operator Aaron Palmer, Operator Dan Moore, Attendants Jeff Starring and Brandon Yule

WEBSITE: www.cityoflittlefalls.net

GPS COORDINATES: Latitude: 43°02’19.75” N; Longitude: 74°50’37.16” W

profile Little Falls (N.Y.) Wastewater Treatment Plant

“We spent $285,000 on oil alone to burn the

material. That doesn’t include having an employee

on hand to run the incinerator and other costs

associated with the process. Now our emissions

are gone, our ash in the landfill is gone and the

exposure for employees is gone.”JIM PALMER

M



A NEW YORK COMMUNITY DEVISES AN ALTERNATIVE BIOSOLIDS MANAGEMENT PROCESS THAT ELIMINATES INCINERATOR EMISSIONS AND YIELDS SUBSTANTIAL COST SAVINGS

By Pete Litterski

Two WaysGreen

The Little Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant uses a Bio-tower trickling filter system, shown at the right. (Photography by Kirsten Celo)

FACING NEW U.S. EPA AIR-QUALITY STANDARDS THAT would require major upgrades at the city’s biosolids incinerator, leaders in Little Falls, N.Y., in 2012 asked the wastewater treatment plant team to study all options before moving ahead.

A consultant study estimated the cost of bringing the incinerator into compliance at up to $6.2 million. City leaders wanted to know if there was a more cost-effective solution. For Sam Ostasz, chief operator at the treatment plant, the challenge became an opportunity to cap off a four-decade career with a project that turned green in more ways than one.

Ostasz and his colleagues thought they “could come up with something better” than upgrading the 40-year-old oil-fired incinerator. Working with a local consultant, Jim Palmer, they developed a plan that required a much smaller initial investment, significantly reduced the treatment plant’s operat-ing costs and eliminated incinerator emissions.

Palmer coordinated replacement of the incinerator with a new system that takes dewatered biosolids by conveyor to a new building, where the material is deposited in trailers owned by WeCare Organics. The company hauls the material to rural Pennsylvania, where it is used to help reclaim land scraped bare by strip mining.

TEAM EFFORT

Palmer, a Little Falls native, credits Ostasz and other city employees for helping turn the potentially costly project into an efficient cost-saving pro-cess. “We used the talents of public works employees for the construction, the excavation and most of the work put into this,” he recalls. The project involved installation of a conveyor system (Martin Sprocket & Gear) from the treatment plant’s dewatering press to a shed where WeCare Organics parks its trailers.

The contract with WeCare calls for biosolids containing at least 20 per-cent solids — an easy target since the material was already running about 30 to 35 percent solids. Even so, Ostasz wanted to know if the city needed to upgrade or replace its 1-meter belt press (BDP Industries). A consultant from the manufacturer inspected the operation. “He told us we didn’t need to buy another press,” says Ostasz.

Instead, he proposed a six-year rehabilitation program that would extend the press’s life for another 20 years. Instead of spreading the project over six years, however, Ostasz chose full rehabilitation to prepare for the new bio-solids program. “We replaced probably 90 percent of the rollers, and where we replaced rollers, we also replaced bearings,” he says. When the work was complete the press was delivering material at 35 to 40 percent solids.

Between the conveyor, the new building and the press upgrade, the total project cost the city about $200,000 by the time it was dedicated in April 2013. “We didn’t have to bond for anything,” Palmer says.

POPULATION SERVED: 4,900

PLANT FLOWS: 7 mgd design, 5 mgd average

PLANT PROCESS: Bio-tower trickling filter

BIOSOLIDS PROCESS: Gravity settling tanks/belt press dewatering

BIOSOLIDS VOLUME: 2,500 wet tons/year

BIOSOLIDS USE: Hauled by contractor for mine site reclamation

STAFF: Chief Operator Sam Ostasz, Assistant Chief Operator Aaron Palmer, Operator Dan Moore, Attendants Jeff Starring and Brandon Yule

WEBSITE: www.cityoflittlefalls.net


profile Little Falls (N.Y.) Wastewater Treatment Plant

“We spent $285,000 on oil alone to burn the

material. That doesn’t include having an employee

on hand to run the incinerator and other costs

associated with the process. Now our emissions

are gone, our ash in the landfill is gone and the

exposure for employees is gone.”JIM PALMER

M


BETTER USE OF STAFFOstasz has been able to cut the average monthly overtime at the treat-

ment plant by nearly half, from 210 to 110 hours, and he has gone from two shifts to one shift. The reduction in overtime and shift differentials already has saved the city substantial money. Rather than reduce staffing, Ostasz dedicated more of his operators’ time to preventive maintenance, which he believes will help the plant operate more efficiently and reliably.

Because the biosolids are being trucked to Pennsylvania for land appli-cation, Little Falls faces an added layer of regulatory oversight. But the city has had no trouble producing Class B biosolids that comply with New York, Pennsylvania and federal regulations. “We did all the samples for both states and the EPA and we’ve met the standards,” says Palmer.

Ostasz adds, “We’re required to test our biosol-ids once a year, but we’re doing a full scan on our belt press material monthly.” The Little Falls operators use the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure to test the biosolids for a wide range of toxic sub-stances, including heavy metals, herbicides, pesti-cides, chlorides and chloroforms.

“We are not having any problems with any of our limits,” says Ostasz. In addition to the city’s testing regimen, WeCare tests the biosolids for pathogens and treats the material with lime before land application.

TO THE MINEThe material is trucked 250 miles south to WeCare’s biosolids manage-

ment facility on a 1,850-acre abandoned mine site near Tremont, Pa. The facility occupies about 10 acres.

Little Falls has a population of 4,900 and the water utility serves 2,800 metered connections. The wastewater system has three Significant Indus-trial Users: two paper mills and a stainless steel tank manufacturer. Seventy percent of the treatment plant flow comes from the industrial users, most of that from the paper mills. The industries pretreat their wastewater.

The Little Falls treatment plant has a 7 mgd design and averages 5 mgd. The trickling filter plant went online in 1972. Ostasz projects that with the

“The city leaders are happy with the green they’re saving in their pockets.”SAM OSTASZ

Brandon Yule, operator trainee at the plant, cleans the wiers on the secondary clarifier.

HAULING COSTS LESSAlthough the city pays WeCare

Organics to haul the biosolids, the expense is far less than it cost to incinerate the material. On top of that, Ostasz’s efforts to improve belt performance paid off in lower volume and fewer trips. “We’re saving over $100,000 a year easily,” says Ostasz, who will retire in 2014. The savings on capital expense and operations have been well received by community leaders and ratepayers.

The old incinerator used to burn around the clock. “We spent $285,000 on oil alone to burn the material,” says Palmer. “That doesn’t include having an employee on hand to run the incinerator and other costs associated with the process. Now our emissions are gone, our ash in the landfill is gone and the exposure for employees is gone. The city treasury is happy, the mayor’s happy and I think even the EPA is happy.”

At the dedication of the new facility on April 29, 2013, Mayor Robert J. Peters noted that the city would save $25,000 a year on its power bill because the new screw conveyor system runs on a combined 10 hp in electric motors, compared to the combined 120 hp in motors used to move materials for the old incinerator system.

DIVERSE OPERATIONEven in producing 2,500 wet tons of biosolids per year, Little

Falls would have to go a long way to rival the largest source of biosolids for its land application contractor, WeCare Organics. In late 2011, the company won the contract to handle biosolids from New York City’s wastewater treatment operations.

WeCare is based in Jordan, N.Y., but has operations in Pennsyl-vania, New Jersey, Utah, Massachusetts, Michigan and Connecti-cut. In addition to biosolids, the company recycles yard waste.

Little Falls’ biosolids are hauled to the WeCare Organics site in Tremont, Pa., which handles biosolids from up to 20 municipal wastewater systems.

President/CEO Jeffrey Leblanc says, “Everything is processed into either Class B or Class A biosolids. Most of what we use is processed into Class A with an alkaline process.”

Some of the Class A biosolids are marketed commercially as WeCare Ag-Advantage, a soil amendment and agricultural lime product. WeCare uses both Class A and Class B biosolids for its mine reclamation project at the former Pennsylvania strip mine.

“We’ve reclaimed more than 70 acres,” Leblanc says. The project involves the planting of hybrid poplar trees atop trenches that have been filled with biosolids and capped with soil.

ABOVE: Inside of Bio-tower system, where bacterial growth attached to some 3 million pieces of plastic remove organics from wastewater. RIGHT: Sam Ostasz, chief plant opera-tor, checks the pH level of a water sample using an Orion VERSA-STAR benchtop pH meter (Thermo Fisher Scientific).


BETTER USE OF STAFFOstasz has been able to cut the average monthly overtime at the treat-

ment plant by nearly half, from 210 to 110 hours, and he has gone from two shifts to one shift. The reduction in overtime and shift differentials already has saved the city substantial money. Rather than reduce staffing, Ostasz dedicated more of his operators’ time to preventive maintenance, which he believes will help the plant operate more efficiently and reliably.

Because the biosolids are being trucked to Pennsylvania for land appli-cation, Little Falls faces an added layer of regulatory oversight. But the city has had no trouble producing Class B biosolids that comply with New York, Pennsylvania and federal regulations. “We did all the samples for both states and the EPA and we’ve met the standards,” says Palmer.

Ostasz adds, “We’re required to test our biosol-ids once a year, but we’re doing a full scan on our belt press material monthly.” The Little Falls operators use the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure to test the biosolids for a wide range of toxic sub-stances, including heavy metals, herbicides, pesti-cides, chlorides and chloroforms.

“We are not having any problems with any of our limits,” says Ostasz. In addition to the city’s testing regimen, WeCare tests the biosolids for pathogens and treats the material with lime before land application.

TO THE MINEThe material is trucked 250 miles south to WeCare’s biosolids manage-

ment facility on a 1,850-acre abandoned mine site near Tremont, Pa. The facility occupies about 10 acres.

Little Falls has a population of 4,900 and the water utility serves 2,800 metered connections. The wastewater system has three Significant Indus-trial Users: two paper mills and a stainless steel tank manufacturer. Seventy percent of the treatment plant flow comes from the industrial users, most of that from the paper mills. The industries pretreat their wastewater.

The Little Falls treatment plant has a 7 mgd design and averages 5 mgd. The trickling filter plant went online in 1972. Ostasz projects that with the

“The city leaders are happy with the green they’re saving in their pockets.”SAM OSTASZ

Brandon Yule, operator trainee at the plant, cleans the wiers on the secondary clarifier.

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HAULING COSTS LESSAlthough the city pays WeCare

Organics to haul the biosolids, the expense is far less than it cost to incinerate the material. On top of that, Ostasz’s efforts to improve belt performance paid off in lower volume and fewer trips. “We’re saving over $100,000 a year easily,” says Ostasz, who will retire in 2014. The savings on capital expense and operations have been well received by community leaders and ratepayers.

The old incinerator used to burn around the clock. “We spent $285,000 on oil alone to burn the material,” says Palmer. “That doesn’t include having an employee on hand to run the incinerator and other costs associated with the process. Now our emissions are gone, our ash in the landfill is gone and the exposure for employees is gone. The city treasury is happy, the mayor’s happy and I think even the EPA is happy.”

At the dedication of the new facility on April 29, 2013, Mayor Robert J. Peters noted that the city would save $25,000 a year on its power bill because the new screw conveyor system runs on a combined 10 hp in electric motors, compared to the combined 120 hp in motors used to move materials for the old incinerator system.

DIVERSE OPERATIONEven in producing 2,500 wet tons of biosolids per year, Little

Falls would have to go a long way to rival the largest source of biosolids for its land application contractor, WeCare Organics. In late 2011, the company won the contract to handle biosolids from New York City’s wastewater treatment operations.

WeCare is based in Jordan, N.Y., but has operations in Pennsyl-vania, New Jersey, Utah, Massachusetts, Michigan and Connecti-cut. In addition to biosolids, the company recycles yard waste.

Little Falls’ biosolids are hauled to the WeCare Organics site in Tremont, Pa., which handles biosolids from up to 20 municipal wastewater systems.

President/CEO Jeffrey Leblanc says, “Everything is processed into either Class B or Class A biosolids. Most of what we use is processed into Class A with an alkaline process.”

Some of the Class A biosolids are marketed commercially as WeCare Ag-Advantage, a soil amendment and agricultural lime product. WeCare uses both Class A and Class B biosolids for its mine reclamation project at the former Pennsylvania strip mine.

“We’ve reclaimed more than 70 acres,” Leblanc says. The project involves the planting of hybrid poplar trees atop trenches that have been filled with biosolids and capped with soil.

ABOVE: Inside of Bio-tower system, where bacterial growth attached to some 3 million pieces of plastic remove organics from wastewater. RIGHT: Sam Ostasz, chief plant opera-tor, checks the pH level of a water sample using an Orion VERSA-STAR benchtop pH meter (Thermo Fisher Scientific).


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®

®

improvements to the belt press, the plant will produce about 2,500 wet tons of dewatered biosolids per year. At that rate, the facility can fill one of WeCare’s 43-foot hopper dump trailers every other day.

The biosolids program has made the treatment plant greener. In addi-tion, “The city leaders are happy with the green they’re saving in their pockets,” says Ostasz. He’s proud of the results and says it’s great that the project is both environmentally and budget friendly: “It means a lot when you are doing things the right way.”

BDP Industries, Inc.518/527-5417www.bdpindustries.com(See ad page 45)

Martin Sprocket & Gear, Inc.817/258-3000www.martinsprocket.com

Thermo Fisher Scientific800/637-3739www.thermo.com/processpumps

WeCare Organics, LLC315/689-1937www.wecareorganics.com

featured products from:

The Little Falls team includes, from left, Brandon Yule, operator trainee; Aaron Palmer, assistant chief plant operator; Jim Palmer, city consultant; and Sam Ostasz, chief plant operator. They are shown with the tank where biosolids are stored before beneficial use.

•

®

®

improvements to the belt press, the plant will produce about 2,500 wet tons of dewatered biosolids per year. At that rate, the facility can fill one of WeCare’s 43-foot hopper dump trailers every other day.

The biosolids program has made the treatment plant greener. In addi-tion, “The city leaders are happy with the green they’re saving in their pockets,” says Ostasz. He’s proud of the results and says it’s great that the project is both environmentally and budget friendly: “It means a lot when you are doing things the right way.”

BDP Industries, Inc.518/527-5417www.bdpindustries.com(See ad page 45)

Martin Sprocket & Gear, Inc.817/258-3000www.martinsprocket.com

Thermo Fisher Scientific800/637-3739www.thermo.com/processpumps

WeCare Organics, LLC315/689-1937www.wecareorganics.com


The Little Falls team includes, from left, Brandon Yule, operator trainee; Aaron Palmer, assistant chief plant operator; Jim Palmer, city consultant; and Sam Ostasz, chief plant operator. They are shown with the tank where biosolids are stored before beneficial use.


The Elk River Wastewater Treatment Plant in Eureka (8.6 mgd design) is a trickling filter-solids contact facility near the mouth of the Elk River, which separates the Northern California mainland from a large

estuary that is part of the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Directly in front of the plant is a 139-acre restored wetland that is also a

part of the refuge. “Our operators are responsible for maintenance and keep-ing the pathway through the area open,” says Bruce Gehrke, utility opera-tions manager. “The wildlife area was part of our mitigation agreement with the Coastal Commission that allowed the plant to be built.”

DIVERSE FUNDING

The pathway Gehrke refers to is a 1.5-mile multiuse trail that meanders through the wetland next to coastal willow patches, sand dunes and salt

marshes. Known as the Hikshari Trail, it was recently upgraded through collaboration between the city and the Redwood Community Action Agency, a local nonprofit organization.

Funding for the $1.7 million project came through grants from the California River Parkways, a pro-gram of the state natural resources agency, the PG&E gas and electric utility, and the California Coastal Conservancy, a state agency com-

mitted to coastal preservation and access.“Since the upgrade, the city Parks and Recreation department has

become more involved, but we still do our part,” Gehrke says. The 10-foot-wide paved trail has 2-foot-wide crushed shale shoulders. Improvements include picnic tables, a truss span bridge, an observation tower, restrooms, an information kiosk and a parking area next to a boat launch.

HAVEN FOR BIRDS

“It’s really a pretty cool place,” says Gehrke. Humboldt Bay is a key stop-

over for millions of migratory sea birds. Thousands of geese, ducks, swans and shorebirds use the refuge each year.

Before the upgrade, the trail was a roughed-out area, essentially a sanc-tuary and a volunteer trail, says Miles Slattery, Eureka director of Parks and Recreation. “Now the path is a first-class trail that the operators pretty much take care of,” Slattery says.

The treatment facility is front and center to hikers, bicyclists, birders and other trail users. It is also on display through tours for community residents, including students. In addition to elementary and high schoolers, many stu-dents from nearby Humboldt State University and the College of the Red-woods regularly visit the plant and the wetlands.

Gehrke says the plant is unique because it uses the ocean’s ebb-tide to transport its treated effluent from a nearly 4-acre holding pond through Humboldt Bay to the Pacific Ocean: “Twice a day since the plant was commis-sioned in 1984, the tide has been the conveyor to our outfall.”

BENEFICIAL USE

During periods of high rainfall, excess effluent is stored in two 2-acre fac-ultative sludge lagoons. Biosolids are periodically dredged from the lagoons and applied at an agronomic rate on an 80-acre reclamation site owned by the city. The site is leased to a farmer who raises hay for baling and grazes cattle.

By Jeff Smith

Keepers of the RefugeOPERATORS AT A COASTAL CALIFORNIA TREATMENT PLANT HELP MAINTAIN AN IMPRESSIVE WETLAND AREA THAT INCLUDES A MULTIUSE PUBLIC TRAIL

PLANTSCAPES

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“The wildlife area was

part of our mitigation

agreement with the

Coastal Commission

that allowed the plant

to be built.”BRUCE GEHRKE

A 1.5 mile trail gives the public easy access to Eureka’s treatment facility.

A 139-acre restored wetland in front of the treatment plant is an attraction for bird and wildlife watchers and casual strollers.

Says Gehrke, “We do everything we can to fulfill our stated mission to protect the public health and the environment and provide for the beneficial use of the waters and the natural wildlife habitat in the Eureka area.”

PH

OT

OG

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PH

Y B

Y V

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The team at the Elk River Wastewater Treatment Plant includes, front row, from left, Frank Bisio, maintenance; and Bruce Gehrke, manager; second row, Harry Galloway, maintenance; Joe Nunez, operations; Duane Primofiore and Ron Wood, maintenance; third row, Jerry Sneed, operations supervisor; Rusty Dees, maintenance supervisor; and Andrea Mauro, administration; back row, Steve Jessen, operations; Dean Schoonmaker and Cliff Thiesen, maintenance; and David Adams, laboratory technician.


www.ipec.ca • [email protected] • 1.800.663.8409 • 2889 Norland Ave, Burnaby, B.C.

Municipal Wastewater Treatment Solutions• Headworks fi ne screens • Scum screens• Sludge thickening • Digester screens• Washing & compacting • Small package WWTP screens• Septage Receiving

The Elk River Wastewater Treatment Plant in Eureka (8.6 mgd design) is a trickling filter-solids contact facility near the mouth of the Elk River, which separates the Northern California mainland from a large

estuary that is part of the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Directly in front of the plant is a 139-acre restored wetland that is also a

part of the refuge. “Our operators are responsible for maintenance and keep-ing the pathway through the area open,” says Bruce Gehrke, utility opera-tions manager. “The wildlife area was part of our mitigation agreement with the Coastal Commission that allowed the plant to be built.”

DIVERSE FUNDING

The pathway Gehrke refers to is a 1.5-mile multiuse trail that meanders through the wetland next to coastal willow patches, sand dunes and salt

marshes. Known as the Hikshari Trail, it was recently upgraded through collaboration between the city and the Redwood Community Action Agency, a local nonprofit organization.

Funding for the $1.7 million project came through grants from the California River Parkways, a pro-gram of the state natural resources agency, the PG&E gas and electric utility, and the California Coastal Conservancy, a state agency com-

mitted to coastal preservation and access.“Since the upgrade, the city Parks and Recreation department has

become more involved, but we still do our part,” Gehrke says. The 10-foot-wide paved trail has 2-foot-wide crushed shale shoulders. Improvements include picnic tables, a truss span bridge, an observation tower, restrooms, an information kiosk and a parking area next to a boat launch.

HAVEN FOR BIRDS

“It’s really a pretty cool place,” says Gehrke. Humboldt Bay is a key stop-

over for millions of migratory sea birds. Thousands of geese, ducks, swans and shorebirds use the refuge each year.

Before the upgrade, the trail was a roughed-out area, essentially a sanc-tuary and a volunteer trail, says Miles Slattery, Eureka director of Parks and Recreation. “Now the path is a first-class trail that the operators pretty much take care of,” Slattery says.

The treatment facility is front and center to hikers, bicyclists, birders and other trail users. It is also on display through tours for community residents, including students. In addition to elementary and high schoolers, many stu-dents from nearby Humboldt State University and the College of the Red-woods regularly visit the plant and the wetlands.

Gehrke says the plant is unique because it uses the ocean’s ebb-tide to transport its treated effluent from a nearly 4-acre holding pond through Humboldt Bay to the Pacific Ocean: “Twice a day since the plant was commis-sioned in 1984, the tide has been the conveyor to our outfall.”

BENEFICIAL USE

During periods of high rainfall, excess effluent is stored in two 2-acre fac-ultative sludge lagoons. Biosolids are periodically dredged from the lagoons and applied at an agronomic rate on an 80-acre reclamation site owned by the city. The site is leased to a farmer who raises hay for baling and grazes cattle.

By Jeff Smith

Keepers of the RefugeOPERATORS AT A COASTAL CALIFORNIA TREATMENT PLANT HELP MAINTAIN AN IMPRESSIVE WETLAND AREA THAT INCLUDES A MULTIUSE PUBLIC TRAIL

PLANTSCAPES

PH

OT

OG

RA

PH

Y B

Y V

SB

PR

OD

UC

TIO

NS

“The wildlife area was

part of our mitigation

agreement with the

Coastal Commission

that allowed the plant

to be built.”BRUCE GEHRKE

A 1.5 mile trail gives the public easy access to Eureka’s treatment facility.

A 139-acre restored wetland in front of the treatment plant is an attraction for bird and wildlife watchers and casual strollers.

Says Gehrke, “We do everything we can to fulfill our stated mission to protect the public health and the environment and provide for the beneficial use of the waters and the natural wildlife habitat in the Eureka area.”

PH

OT

OG

RA

PH

Y B

Y V

SB

PR

OD

UC

TIO

NS

The team at the Elk River Wastewater Treatment Plant includes, front row, from left, Frank Bisio, maintenance; and Bruce Gehrke, manager; second row, Harry Galloway, maintenance; Joe Nunez, operations; Duane Primofiore and Ron Wood, maintenance; third row, Jerry Sneed, operations supervisor; Rusty Dees, maintenance supervisor; and Andrea Mauro, administration; back row, Steve Jessen, operations; Dean Schoonmaker and Cliff Thiesen, maintenance; and David Adams, laboratory technician.


TRAVELING THE UNITED STATES AS A TECHNICAL FIELD SERVICE specialist for a wastewater equipment company was a great life for John Leonhard — when he was young and single.

That changed when he married and started a family. Thirty years ago, he took a job as plant superintendent in Fond du Lac, Wis., and he has been there ever since. He leads a fully cross-trained team of six operators, a mainte-nance team and a laboratory staff who run a 9.8 mgd (design), six-year-old regional treat-ment facility.

Leaving life as a “road warrior” has allowed him to spend time with his family, promote water careers in local schools and join commu-nity service organizations. On the professional side, he earned the Water Environment Feder-ation’s 2013 William D. Hatfield award from the Central States Water Environment Association.

After a total of 45 years in the clean-water industry, he’s proud of what he and his team have done to protect the plant’s receiving water, the 137,000-acre Lake Winnebago, a nationally known walleye fishery and a haven for recreational boaters. He’s been at it long enough to see the end of his career, but observes, “I’ve got a great staff. I’m sitting here at 65 years old and my job is so pleasant that I kind of dread the thought of retiring.”

WELL TRAVELED

A Wisconsin native, Leonhard was born in Elkhorn in the southeast cor-ner of the state and raised in Ashland in the far northwest on Lake Superior.

After earning as associate degree in machine design at Indianhead Technical College in Rice Lake, he joined Zimpro, a wastewater treat-ment equipment company in the Wausau area (near the center of the state) that is now part of Siemens Water Technologies.

He started out doing drawings of treat-ment system layouts but soon took a position training treatment plant customers to operate the company’s wet air oxidation systems for biosolids. Those systems would pressurize sludge up to 350 psi in a reactor vessel, inject air and heat the mix to 370 degrees. A 30-min-ute process yielded a sterile material easily dewatered to 35 or 40 percent solids on a vac-uum filter.

“It was a kind of process the typical waste-water treatment plant operator wouldn’t see,” Leonhard recalls. “The high temperature and pressure, the big pumps, compressors, boiler and instrumentation — they weren’t used to dealing with that. Zimpro needed people to run the process and train customers.”

He stayed with Zimpro for 15 years, inter-rupted by two years in the U.S. Army that included serving in Vietnam as an infantry ser-geant with the 101st Airborne Division.

While with Zimpro he also served under contract as superintendent of the Wausau Wastewater Treatment Plant.

He moved to Fond du Lac as in interim contract superintendent while the city did a search to fill the position permanently. “On their first attempt, they weren’t able to find anybody,” Leonhard says. “My wife Judy and I had just had our second son, and we thought it might be nice if we lived in one place

top performer: OPERATOR

HOMER I G H T A T

JOHN LEONHARD GAVE UP LIFE AS A TRAVELING TRAINER AND TECHNICIAN TO LEAD A SKILLED PLANT TEAM AND ULTIMATELY SUPERVISE A BRAND NEW REGIONAL FACILITY

By Ted J. Rulseh

John Leonhard, wastewater operations manager for the Fond du Lac Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility, displays his 2013 William D. Hatfield Award. (Photography by Chip Manthey)

John Leonhard, Fond du Lac (Wis.) Regional Wastewater Treatment FacilityPOSITION: Wastewater operations manager

EXPERIENCE: 45 years (30 years with Fond du Lac)

EDUCATION: Associate degree, machine design, Indianhead Technical College, Rice Lake, Wis.; bachelor’s degree, business administration, Mount Senario College, Ladysmith, Wis.

CERTIFICATIONS: Wastewater Operator Certifications A-J; Municipal Water Supply Operator Certifications D and G

RECOGNITIONS: 2013 William D. Hatfield Award, Central States WEA; 2007 Arthur Sidney Bedel Award, WEF; 2001 George F. Bernauer Award, Wisconsin Wastewater Operators Association

GOALS: Continue discharging safe water to the environment at reasonable price to ratepayers


profileM

ABOVE: Katie Robles, left, and Dan Casey, right, process service engineers with Siemens Water Technologies, perform lab tests for a phosphorus removal pilot study as John Leonhard looks on. BELOW: The Fond du Lac Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility.

COURTESY OF THE FOND DU LAC REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT FACILITY


Streholski, maintenance mechanics; and David Overbo, plant electrician.James Kaiser, a chemist, is lab and pretreatment coordinator, supervising

Autumn Fisher and Richard Graham, lab technicians, and Curtis Giese, sam-pling technician. In 2011, that team won the Wisconsin Registered Labora-tory of the Year Award among large facilities from the state Department of Natural Resources.

The plant staff has been pared back significantly over the years, largely because of automation. When Leonhard came on board, the operations, maintenance, lab and administrative staffs totaled 28, of whom 18 were oper-ators. At the time the plant was staffed around the clock, seven days a week. Now, with new process equipment and a sophisticated SCADA system with Wonderware software (Invensys), it is staffed one shift per day, five days a week. Operators take turns being on call during unstaffed hours.

“The on-call operator carries a smartphone,” says Leonhard. “If there is an alarm at the plant, he and the management people get a text, and right after that he gets a phone call.” The operator then must report to the plant to resolve the issue.

JACKS OF ALL TRADES

The operating staff members are very much a team — plant responsibilities are divided into six roles, through which all six operators rotate at one-week intervals:

Control room operator: Takes weather read-ings, reviews all SCADA alarm and trending screens, maintains the operations logbook, communicates with the sanitary engineer and operators and main-tenance staff on equipment and operational changes.

Plant operator: Makes rounds of buildings and thoroughly inspects equipment, checks primary and final clarifiers, does mixed liquor suspended solids sampling, works closely with the control room operator.

Centrifuge/digester operator: Runs the cen-trifuge and keeps the centrifuge log, makes rounds of all digester/biogas equipment, pumps scum, sam-ples the digesters and tests for pH, changes the poly-mer bag and inspects the polymer system, coordinates biosolids hauling.

Industrial monitoring operator: Works with the sampling technician, works on the weekly task list doing housekeeping and operational duties as required.

Maintenance operator: Performs housekeep-ing and operational duties as required, starts the bio-gas engine/generator, takes readings and inspects the operation, works with the maintenance staff directed by the maintenance supervisor.

Relief operator: First to fill in when other oper-ators are absent for vacation or sick leave, works on the weekly task list doing housekeeping and opera-tional duties.

Each operator is fully trained and qualified to fulfill all six roles. The lead, control, plant and solids operator roles are considered essential — they are always filled during staffed hours. “We can’t function without people in those positions,” says Leonhard. “The other positions, although they are necessary functions, we can get by without them for a few days at a time if somebody is out sick or on vacation.”

Cross-training the team required investments, made easier because three of the operators were on staff during the latest plant upgrade. “We had inten-sive training as we put various systems online,” Leonhard says. “We had classroom training. Manu-

facturer representatives came in. Strand Associates put on classroom and hands-on training.

“We videotaped all the training. So when we brought the three newest operators onboard we were able to sit them down with the videos and oper-ations manuals, and they were able to go through, area by area, and see what they would be doing. Of course, a considerable amount of job shadowing went with that. In addition, most of our team members have two-year degrees in water technology, and they had experience working in treatment plants when we hired them.”

AMPLE REWARDSA capable staff has enabled Leonhard to extend his role into the commu-

nity. He made it a practice to open the plant freely to tour groups: “Any group that wants to pay a visit and find out what happens after they flush the toilet, we’ve been receptive to that.”

and I wasn’t traveling all the time. I asked the city if they would consider me, and that afternoon I was on the payroll.”

PLANT PROGRESS

When he signed on in Fond du Lac, the treatment plant had a pure oxy-gen activated sludge process and the Zimpro wet air oxidation system. “We had sealed-top basins, and the oxygen was pumped in on top of the mixed liquor,” Leonhard recalls. “Mechanical mixers incorporated the oxygen.”

Work on the new Fond du Lac Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility began in 2005, and the plant went online in 2008. At its heart is a conven-tional activated sludge process with Sulzer Pumps Solutions HST blowers, fine-bubble diffusers (Sanitaire) and oxic and anoxic zones (anoxic mixers by Aqua-Aerobic Systems) for nitrification and denitrification.

The process begins with perforated-plate fine screens (JWC Environmental) and a vortex grit removal system (WesTech Engineering). The pri-mary clarifiers (Envirex/Siemens Water Technolo-gies) use a co-thickening process designed by the plant’s consulting engineering firm, Strand Associates.

“Waste activated sludge comes back to the head of the primaries,” says Leonhard. “The primary and waste activated sludge are commingled, and the clarifiers have a thickening mechanism in the center well. The advantage is that the primary sludge helps settle the waste activated sludge, and we’re able to send material at 3.5 percent solids to the anaerobic digesters.”

Biosolids are dewatered to 26 percent solids in a centrifuge (Centrisys)

and are land-applied on farms. A 450 kW engine-generator (Caterpillar) burns digester methane to produce about one-third of the plant’s electricity.

After final clarification, effluent goes through UV disinfection (TrojanUV) and is discharged to Lake Winnebago. Typical effluent (average flow 7 mgd) contains about 3.5 mg/L BOD, 5 mg/L TSS, 0.07 mg/L total nitrogen and 0.82 mg/L phosphorus. “We had a new permit issued on January 1, 2013, and the phosphorus limit we are looking at sometime in the future will be 0.04 mg/L.”

PROUD OF THE TEAM

Keeping it all humming is an experienced team recognized for excel-lence. Mary Kunde, account clerk, supports Leonhard. David Carlson, sani-

tary engineer, leads the six plant operators: John Gremminger, Steve McCord, Michael Nolde, Joseph O’Boyle, Paul Rawlsky and Phil Schad. They earned a 2012 Treatment Facility Operations Award from Central States WEA.

The maintenance team includes Stephen Durocher, maintenance and facilities foreman; Larry Dikeman, Mark Haensgen, Paul Krueger and James

“I’ve got a great staff.

I’m sitting here at 65

years old and my job is

so pleasant that I kind

of dread the thought

of retiring.”JOHN LEONHARD

The Fond du Lac operations team includes, left side, standing, from left, John Leonhard, operations manager; Richard Graham and Autumn Fisher, laboratory technicians; kneeling, Curtis Giese, sampling technician; and Mary Kunde, account clerk. Right side, standing, Dave Carlson, sanitary engineer; Steven McCord, operator; Mark Haensgen, Jim Streholski, Larry Dikeman and Paul Krueger, maintenance mechanics; David Overbo, plant electrician; Phil Schad, operator; Jim Kaiser, lab and pretreatment coordinator; kneeling, John Gremminger, Mike Nolde, Paul Rawlsky and Joe O’Boyle, operators; and Steve Durocher, maintenance and facilities foreman.

“We videotaped all the training. So when we brought the three

newest operators onboard we were able to sit them down with the

videos and operations manuals, and they were able to go through,

area by area, and see what they would be doing.”JOHN LEONHARD

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Streholski, maintenance mechanics; and David Overbo, plant electrician.James Kaiser, a chemist, is lab and pretreatment coordinator, supervising

Autumn Fisher and Richard Graham, lab technicians, and Curtis Giese, sam-pling technician. In 2011, that team won the Wisconsin Registered Labora-tory of the Year Award among large facilities from the state Department of Natural Resources.

The plant staff has been pared back significantly over the years, largely because of automation. When Leonhard came on board, the operations, maintenance, lab and administrative staffs totaled 28, of whom 18 were oper-ators. At the time the plant was staffed around the clock, seven days a week. Now, with new process equipment and a sophisticated SCADA system with Wonderware software (Invensys), it is staffed one shift per day, five days a week. Operators take turns being on call during unstaffed hours.

“The on-call operator carries a smartphone,” says Leonhard. “If there is an alarm at the plant, he and the management people get a text, and right after that he gets a phone call.” The operator then must report to the plant to resolve the issue.

JACKS OF ALL TRADES

The operating staff members are very much a team — plant responsibilities are divided into six roles, through which all six operators rotate at one-week intervals:

Control room operator: Takes weather read-ings, reviews all SCADA alarm and trending screens, maintains the operations logbook, communicates with the sanitary engineer and operators and main-tenance staff on equipment and operational changes.

Plant operator: Makes rounds of buildings and thoroughly inspects equipment, checks primary and final clarifiers, does mixed liquor suspended solids sampling, works closely with the control room operator.

Centrifuge/digester operator: Runs the cen-trifuge and keeps the centrifuge log, makes rounds of all digester/biogas equipment, pumps scum, sam-ples the digesters and tests for pH, changes the poly-mer bag and inspects the polymer system, coordinates biosolids hauling.

Industrial monitoring operator: Works with the sampling technician, works on the weekly task list doing housekeeping and operational duties as required.

Maintenance operator: Performs housekeep-ing and operational duties as required, starts the bio-gas engine/generator, takes readings and inspects the operation, works with the maintenance staff directed by the maintenance supervisor.

Relief operator: First to fill in when other oper-ators are absent for vacation or sick leave, works on the weekly task list doing housekeeping and opera-tional duties.

Each operator is fully trained and qualified to fulfill all six roles. The lead, control, plant and solids operator roles are considered essential — they are always filled during staffed hours. “We can’t function without people in those positions,” says Leonhard. “The other positions, although they are necessary functions, we can get by without them for a few days at a time if somebody is out sick or on vacation.”

Cross-training the team required investments, made easier because three of the operators were on staff during the latest plant upgrade. “We had inten-sive training as we put various systems online,” Leonhard says. “We had classroom training. Manu-

facturer representatives came in. Strand Associates put on classroom and hands-on training.

“We videotaped all the training. So when we brought the three newest operators onboard we were able to sit them down with the videos and oper-ations manuals, and they were able to go through, area by area, and see what they would be doing. Of course, a considerable amount of job shadowing went with that. In addition, most of our team members have two-year degrees in water technology, and they had experience working in treatment plants when we hired them.”

AMPLE REWARDSA capable staff has enabled Leonhard to extend his role into the commu-

nity. He made it a practice to open the plant freely to tour groups: “Any group that wants to pay a visit and find out what happens after they flush the toilet, we’ve been receptive to that.”

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and I wasn’t traveling all the time. I asked the city if they would consider me, and that afternoon I was on the payroll.”

PLANT PROGRESS

When he signed on in Fond du Lac, the treatment plant had a pure oxy-gen activated sludge process and the Zimpro wet air oxidation system. “We had sealed-top basins, and the oxygen was pumped in on top of the mixed liquor,” Leonhard recalls. “Mechanical mixers incorporated the oxygen.”

Work on the new Fond du Lac Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility began in 2005, and the plant went online in 2008. At its heart is a conven-tional activated sludge process with Sulzer Pumps Solutions HST blowers, fine-bubble diffusers (Sanitaire) and oxic and anoxic zones (anoxic mixers by Aqua-Aerobic Systems) for nitrification and denitrification.

The process begins with perforated-plate fine screens (JWC Environmental) and a vortex grit removal system (WesTech Engineering). The pri-mary clarifiers (Envirex/Siemens Water Technolo-gies) use a co-thickening process designed by the plant’s consulting engineering firm, Strand Associates.

“Waste activated sludge comes back to the head of the primaries,” says Leonhard. “The primary and waste activated sludge are commingled, and the clarifiers have a thickening mechanism in the center well. The advantage is that the primary sludge helps settle the waste activated sludge, and we’re able to send material at 3.5 percent solids to the anaerobic digesters.”

Biosolids are dewatered to 26 percent solids in a centrifuge (Centrisys)

and are land-applied on farms. A 450 kW engine-generator (Caterpillar) burns digester methane to produce about one-third of the plant’s electricity.

After final clarification, effluent goes through UV disinfection (TrojanUV) and is discharged to Lake Winnebago. Typical effluent (average flow 7 mgd) contains about 3.5 mg/L BOD, 5 mg/L TSS, 0.07 mg/L total nitrogen and 0.82 mg/L phosphorus. “We had a new permit issued on January 1, 2013, and the phosphorus limit we are looking at sometime in the future will be 0.04 mg/L.”

PROUD OF THE TEAM

Keeping it all humming is an experienced team recognized for excel-lence. Mary Kunde, account clerk, supports Leonhard. David Carlson, sani-

tary engineer, leads the six plant operators: John Gremminger, Steve McCord, Michael Nolde, Joseph O’Boyle, Paul Rawlsky and Phil Schad. They earned a 2012 Treatment Facility Operations Award from Central States WEA.

The maintenance team includes Stephen Durocher, maintenance and facilities foreman; Larry Dikeman, Mark Haensgen, Paul Krueger and James

“I’ve got a great staff.

I’m sitting here at 65

years old and my job is

so pleasant that I kind

of dread the thought

of retiring.”JOHN LEONHARD

The Fond du Lac operations team includes, left side, standing, from left, John Leonhard, operations manager; Richard Graham and Autumn Fisher, laboratory technicians; kneeling, Curtis Giese, sampling technician; and Mary Kunde, account clerk. Right side, standing, Dave Carlson, sanitary engineer; Steven McCord, operator; Mark Haensgen, Jim Streholski, Larry Dikeman and Paul Krueger, maintenance mechanics; David Overbo, plant electrician; Phil Schad, operator; Jim Kaiser, lab and pretreatment coordinator; kneeling, John Gremminger, Mike Nolde, Paul Rawlsky and Joe O’Boyle, operators; and Steve Durocher, maintenance and facilities foreman.

“We videotaped all the training. So when we brought the three

newest operators onboard we were able to sit them down with the

videos and operations manuals, and they were able to go through,

area by area, and see what they would be doing.”JOHN LEONHARD

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He has also spoken frequently to Fond du Lac high school stu-dents, spending a full day each year addressing chemistry and environ-mental science classes, telling about the entire water cycle, from the time water is pumped from wells until it is discharged to the lake. He also informs students about the jobs available in the water and wastewater industries, the school-ing required and the pay levels.

In addition, the treatment plant hires two interns each year from area universities or technical colleges — paid positions in which the interns work in all areas of the plant.

While Leonhard enjoyed the variety of working on the road early in his career, he appreciated the chance to send down roots in Fond du Lac. “I was able to go home at lunch and see my family,” he says. “I could go home every night and get involved in community affairs. I got to be a Cub Scout leader and a Boy Scout leader and get involved with community service organiza-tions. I’m currently the governor of the state Optimists District.”

He considers the William D. Hatfield Award a crowning achievement. “It can be issued annually to one person in a Water Environment Federation Member Organization, of which Central States WEA is one,” he says. “They look at more than just excellent treatment plant performance — involvement in the industry is important. I’ve been involved in operator training and pro-

fessional organizations throughout my career.”Leonhard is past president of Wisconsin Wastewater Operators Associa-

tion, Central States WEA, and the Municipal Environmental Group, which lobbies on water issues before the Wisconsin legislature, the Department of Natural Resources and the Public Service Commission.

“The award is the pinnacle for someone involved in plant operations,” he says. “The only thing that goes beyond it is having your picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone.”

The Fond du Lac Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility lies on the far north side of its home city and at the west end of a park system that stretches for a mile along the shore of Lake Win-nebago, the largest lake entirely within Wisconsin’s borders. Back in the early 1970s, that area of town had an unsavory reputation and nickname because of the treatment plant.

“It historically was known as Stinky Point,” says John Leon-hard, wastewater operations manager. “The plant used to have open-top trickling filters, and one of the major industries in town was a tannery. Fleshing, hide and hair from the tannery would lie on top of the filters and rot, and it was nasty. This whole end of town had a very distinctive odor to it.”

Plant upgrades corrected the problem years ago, and the current facility, completed in 2008, was designed with sensitivity to the community and to the plant’s surroundings.

“We’re tied right into the park,” says Leonhard. “We paid very close attention to blending into the park as much as possible. We dressed everything up so people didn’t know what they were looking at, but they liked what they saw.”

In fact, the plant has become a bit of an attraction in its own right. A structure built over the outfall on Lake Winnebago doubles as a scenic overlook and a pier from which anglers catch white bass. Says Leonhard, “Fishermen line up to fish our outfall.” It’s more than enough to erase the memories of the bad old days.

“STINKY” NO MORE

John Leonhard checks activated sludge process microbiology.

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Invensys Operations Management949/727-3200www.iom.invensys.com

JWC Environmental800/331-2277www.jwce.com


Sanitaire – a Xylem Brand414/365-2200www.sanitaire.com

Siemens Water Technologies Corp.866/926-8420www.water.siemens.com

Sulzer Pumps Solutions Inc.800/525-7790www.sulzer.com

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WesTech Engineering, Inc.801/265-1000www.westech-inc.com

“Any group that wants to pay a visit and find out what happens after

they flush the toilet, we’ve been receptive to that.”JOHN LEONHARD

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He has also spoken frequently to Fond du Lac high school stu-dents, spending a full day each year addressing chemistry and environ-mental science classes, telling about the entire water cycle, from the time water is pumped from wells until it is discharged to the lake. He also informs students about the jobs available in the water and wastewater industries, the school-ing required and the pay levels.

In addition, the treatment plant hires two interns each year from area universities or technical colleges — paid positions in which the interns work in all areas of the plant.

While Leonhard enjoyed the variety of working on the road early in his career, he appreciated the chance to send down roots in Fond du Lac. “I was able to go home at lunch and see my family,” he says. “I could go home every night and get involved in community affairs. I got to be a Cub Scout leader and a Boy Scout leader and get involved with community service organiza-tions. I’m currently the governor of the state Optimists District.”

He considers the William D. Hatfield Award a crowning achievement. “It can be issued annually to one person in a Water Environment Federation Member Organization, of which Central States WEA is one,” he says. “They look at more than just excellent treatment plant performance — involvement in the industry is important. I’ve been involved in operator training and pro-

fessional organizations throughout my career.”Leonhard is past president of Wisconsin Wastewater Operators Associa-

tion, Central States WEA, and the Municipal Environmental Group, which lobbies on water issues before the Wisconsin legislature, the Department of Natural Resources and the Public Service Commission.

“The award is the pinnacle for someone involved in plant operations,” he says. “The only thing that goes beyond it is having your picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone.”

The Fond du Lac Regional Wastewater Treatment Facility lies on the far north side of its home city and at the west end of a park system that stretches for a mile along the shore of Lake Win-nebago, the largest lake entirely within Wisconsin’s borders. Back in the early 1970s, that area of town had an unsavory reputation and nickname because of the treatment plant.

“It historically was known as Stinky Point,” says John Leon-hard, wastewater operations manager. “The plant used to have open-top trickling filters, and one of the major industries in town was a tannery. Fleshing, hide and hair from the tannery would lie on top of the filters and rot, and it was nasty. This whole end of town had a very distinctive odor to it.”

Plant upgrades corrected the problem years ago, and the current facility, completed in 2008, was designed with sensitivity to the community and to the plant’s surroundings.

“We’re tied right into the park,” says Leonhard. “We paid very close attention to blending into the park as much as possible. We dressed everything up so people didn’t know what they were looking at, but they liked what they saw.”

In fact, the plant has become a bit of an attraction in its own right. A structure built over the outfall on Lake Winnebago doubles as a scenic overlook and a pier from which anglers catch white bass. Says Leonhard, “Fishermen line up to fish our outfall.” It’s more than enough to erase the memories of the bad old days.

“STINKY” NO MORE

John Leonhard checks activated sludge process microbiology.


Caterpillar, Inc.309/675-1000www.catgaspower.com

Centrisys Corporation877/339-5496www.centrisys.us(See ad page 32)

Invensys Operations Management949/727-3200www.iom.invensys.com

JWC Environmental800/331-2277www.jwce.com


Sanitaire – a Xylem Brand414/365-2200www.sanitaire.com

Siemens Water Technologies Corp.866/926-8420www.water.siemens.com

Sulzer Pumps Solutions Inc.800/525-7790www.sulzer.com

TrojanUV888/220-6118www.trojanuv.com

WesTech Engineering, Inc.801/265-1000www.westech-inc.com

“Any group that wants to pay a visit and find out what happens after

they flush the toilet, we’ve been receptive to that.”JOHN LEONHARD

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A challenge issued by the Snohomish County (Wash.) Public Utility District (PUD) No. 1 to reduce energy consumption by 10 percent in three years motivated the Edmonds Wastewa-

ter Treatment Plant team to process solids more efficiently and offset escalating electric bills.

To evaluate energy savings for the challenge, plants must select a baseline representing typical energy use and develop dashboard indicators against which to measure changes. “The main energy indi-cator for most wastewater facilities is kilowatt-hours per million gal-lons treated,” says Pamela Randolph, plant manager. “However, our main indicator is kilowatt-hours per ton of dry solids processed, because we process solids from outside facilities.”

Edmonds’ energy team, led by Curt Zuvela, plant superintendent, chose 2009 as the plant’s baseline year, when processing only the city’s solids required on average 1,964 kWh per ton. Three years later, when solids processing almost doubled, usage dropped to 1,652 kWh per ton.

By the first quarter of 2013, the plant’s energy use decreased by 21.1 percent, enough to power 25 homes and reduce carbon dioxide

emissions by 87,182 pounds. That year, the PUD recog-nized the plant and staff as a 10 Percent Energy Chal-lenge Achiever.

HOW IT WORKS

Upgraded to secondary treatment in 1990, the 11.8 mgd (design) activated sludge plant serves 75,000 people; average flow is 5 mgd. Wastewater enters through 1/4-inch bar screens, then flows through three primary sedimentation tanks, three aeration tanks and three clarifiers. Effluent is disinfected with sodium hypo-chlorite before discharge to Puget Sound.

Two belt filter presses (Alfa Laval Ashbrook Simon-Hartley) dewa-ter biosolids to 23 percent solids. The material is then conveyed at 6 to 9 gpm to a fluidized bed incinerator (Dorr-Oliver). After the incinerator, the flow goes through a heat exchanger. A VenturiPak scrubber (EnviroCare International) treats the air, while the ash is cooled, separated and landfilled.

To establish energy policy and goals, the plant’s energy team joined the Wastewater/Water Sustainability Energy Cohort, a group of northwest wastewater and water agencies. Members shared best practices, helping the Edmonds team members clarify objectives, which they shared with other plant personnel.

“With an average annual O&M budget of $3.5 million and capital improvement fund of $650,000, it made sense to accept the PUD challenge,” says Randolph. “Since we joined the program in 2010, we’ve completed three PUD projects that reduced costs to the city and helped us estimate ongoing savings.”

LOW-HANGING FRUITS

The first project reduced pressure on the internal process water system. The staff replaced the 50 hp pump with a 30 hp pump, reduc-ing overall pressure from 100 psi to 40 psi. In the one area needing 70 psi, they installed a 7.5 hp booster pump (all pumps from Goulds). The modifications saved 166,858 kWh, lowered annual electric costs by $11,513 and produced an incentive check for $31,451 from the PUD.

The next project replaced 40-watt T8 fluorescent tubes and bal-lasts with 25-watt units. “The contractor also replaced some light fix-tures with LEDs, installed motion sensors in offices and restrooms, and added timers in work areas,” says Randolph. The annual savings of 20,033 kWh lowered the electric bill by $1,402 and drew a PUD check for $2,915.

Challenge MetTHE TREATMENT PLANT IN EDMONDS, WASH., RACKS UP BIG SAVINGS AND EARNS UTILITY INCENTIVES WITH A WIDE RANGE OF ENERGY-SAVING PROJECTS

By Scottie Dayton

GREENINGTHE PLANT

The Edmonds plant team includes, front row, from left, Robert Slenker, maintenance mechanic/operator; Ed Oliver, laboratory technician; and Jon Clay, operator; back row, Jim Nordquist, maintenance mechanic; Rod Sebers, lead operator; Jon Lein, operator; Eric Vaughn, lead maintenance mechanic; Curt Zuvela, operations supervisor; Daniel Korstad, instrument/electrical technician; and Les Krestel, pretreatment coordinator.

What’s Your Story?

TPO welcomes news about environmental improvements at your facility for future articles in the Greening the Plant column. Send your ideas to [email protected] or call 715/277-4094.

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The staff identified other projects through the state Department of Enterprise Services (DES) Energy Program, then used its list of local Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) to conduct an audit, evalu-ate projects and help design, install and finance them. ESCO contrac-tors guaranteed the maximum project cost and projected energy savings, while DES energy engineers and the PUD provided long-term monitoring of project savings. The PUD also split projected energy savings between the plant and the contractor.

One such effort replaced a 300 hp centrifugal blower in an aera-tion basin with a 300 hp blower (Aerzen USA). The $325,000 modifi-cation saved 491,248 kWh annually. “Puget Sound Energy mounted meters on both blowers and measured the dif-ference in power consumption,” says Randolph. “Based on the calculated energy savings for the first year of operation, PUD sent an incentive check for $178,849.”

CONSULTANTS AND PUD

Two projects involved working with consul-tants. The first involved a complete mix aeration basin that had Nocardia asteroides bacteria problems. “The engineering firm suggested we switch to a plug flow mode to alleviate the prob-lem and improve the activated sludge process,” says Randolph.

The $292,000 project replaced ceramic dif-fusers with 299 Sanitaire Platinum Series flat-panel neoprene diffusers. It also included new baffles to change the flow pattern, a new hatch in the tank, additional modulating airflow valves and one more dissolved oxygen probe. Plant operators installed the hatch cover, valves and probe. Saving 90,635 kWh lowered annual electric costs by $11,800 and earned an incen-tive check for $51,338.

“Our process control improved during the first year of operating the new configuration,” says Randolph. “Because the improvement is difficult to measure, an engineering consultant is evaluating the ret-rofit to see if we’re receiving the promised benefits. The study will help us make better decisions about retrofitting another aeration basin.”

The most difficult project upsized 5-inch diffuser ports to 8-inch openings on two 36-inch outfalls to reduce head on the effluent pump. “A marine engineering company evaluated dispersion and mixing models, and then the state Department of Ecology approved the selection and modified our permit,” says Randolph. The project, which enabled the plant to sustain gravity flow longer, saved 98,000 kWh annually, lowered the electric bill by $6,762 and earned a $29,400 check from the PUD.

MORE IMPROVEMENTSA second energy audit identified additional projects, including

installation of a variable-frequency drive and programmable timer on the plant’s decorative water fountain. The fountain now cycles off from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.

Last fall, contractors replaced the main electrical switchgear feeding the plant, enclosed the switchboard in a sealed cabinet, and increased safety by adding a remote operator panel. While not specif-ically an energy-saving project, the staff also installed submetering devices to measure localized usage throughout the plant.

“Our operators don’t see electric bills or DES reports of reduced kilowatt-hours,” says Randolph. “They just know the electricity is on when they need it. To demonstrate that what they do does have an effect, we plan to develop dashboard indicators showing real-time energy usage. If we can see it and measure it, we can improve it.”

SOOTHING THE WAYFor the energy team at the Edmonds Wastewater Treatment Plant,

the most difficult part of the Snohomish County Public Utility District No. 1 10 Percent Energy Challenge was identifying the correct baseline and indicators.

“If we began with the wrong starting point or indicators, the result would not reflect the true story,” says Pamela Randolph, plant manager. “The engineers who design these facilities have a reason for everything that is here. Retrofits and improvements must be evaluated closely because everything that happens affects some part of the treatment process.”

Another challenge was keeping the staff members focused on sav-ing energy. Initially, they were excited and offered numerous suggestions, which the energy team evaluated.

“For example, one person suggested reducing the time fans ran in enclosed spaces,” says Randolph. “It certainly would have saved energy, but it wasn’t good practice.”

Rejecting ideas, even with the greatest tact and diplomacy, still wounded some participants.

Says Randolph, “Rekindling enthusiasm and convincing staff that they could make a difference were our most difficult motivational challenges.”

“With an average annual O&M budget of

$3.5 million and capital improvement fund

of $650,000, it made sense to accept the

PUD challenge. Since we joined the program

in 2010, we’ve completed three PUD projects

that reduced costs to the city and helped us

estimate ongoing savings.”PAMELA RANDOLPH

A graph illustrates the impact of energy efficiency enhancements on electric power consumption.


A challenge issued by the Snohomish County (Wash.) Public Utility District (PUD) No. 1 to reduce energy consumption by 10 percent in three years motivated the Edmonds Wastewa-

ter Treatment Plant team to process solids more efficiently and offset escalating electric bills.

To evaluate energy savings for the challenge, plants must select a baseline representing typical energy use and develop dashboard indicators against which to measure changes. “The main energy indi-cator for most wastewater facilities is kilowatt-hours per million gal-lons treated,” says Pamela Randolph, plant manager. “However, our main indicator is kilowatt-hours per ton of dry solids processed, because we process solids from outside facilities.”

Edmonds’ energy team, led by Curt Zuvela, plant superintendent, chose 2009 as the plant’s baseline year, when processing only the city’s solids required on average 1,964 kWh per ton. Three years later, when solids processing almost doubled, usage dropped to 1,652 kWh per ton.

By the first quarter of 2013, the plant’s energy use decreased by 21.1 percent, enough to power 25 homes and reduce carbon dioxide

emissions by 87,182 pounds. That year, the PUD recog-nized the plant and staff as a 10 Percent Energy Chal-lenge Achiever.

HOW IT WORKS

Upgraded to secondary treatment in 1990, the 11.8 mgd (design) activated sludge plant serves 75,000 people; average flow is 5 mgd. Wastewater enters through 1/4-inch bar screens, then flows through three primary sedimentation tanks, three aeration tanks and three clarifiers. Effluent is disinfected with sodium hypo-chlorite before discharge to Puget Sound.

Two belt filter presses (Alfa Laval Ashbrook Simon-Hartley) dewa-ter biosolids to 23 percent solids. The material is then conveyed at 6 to 9 gpm to a fluidized bed incinerator (Dorr-Oliver). After the incinerator, the flow goes through a heat exchanger. A VenturiPak scrubber (EnviroCare International) treats the air, while the ash is cooled, separated and landfilled.

To establish energy policy and goals, the plant’s energy team joined the Wastewater/Water Sustainability Energy Cohort, a group of northwest wastewater and water agencies. Members shared best practices, helping the Edmonds team members clarify objectives, which they shared with other plant personnel.

“With an average annual O&M budget of $3.5 million and capital improvement fund of $650,000, it made sense to accept the PUD challenge,” says Randolph. “Since we joined the program in 2010, we’ve completed three PUD projects that reduced costs to the city and helped us estimate ongoing savings.”

LOW-HANGING FRUITS

The first project reduced pressure on the internal process water system. The staff replaced the 50 hp pump with a 30 hp pump, reduc-ing overall pressure from 100 psi to 40 psi. In the one area needing 70 psi, they installed a 7.5 hp booster pump (all pumps from Goulds). The modifications saved 166,858 kWh, lowered annual electric costs by $11,513 and produced an incentive check for $31,451 from the PUD.

The next project replaced 40-watt T8 fluorescent tubes and bal-lasts with 25-watt units. “The contractor also replaced some light fix-tures with LEDs, installed motion sensors in offices and restrooms, and added timers in work areas,” says Randolph. The annual savings of 20,033 kWh lowered the electric bill by $1,402 and drew a PUD check for $2,915.

Challenge MetTHE TREATMENT PLANT IN EDMONDS, WASH., RACKS UP BIG SAVINGS AND EARNS UTILITY INCENTIVES WITH A WIDE RANGE OF ENERGY-SAVING PROJECTS

By Scottie Dayton

GREENINGTHE PLANT

The Edmonds plant team includes, front row, from left, Robert Slenker, maintenance mechanic/operator; Ed Oliver, laboratory technician; and Jon Clay, operator; back row, Jim Nordquist, maintenance mechanic; Rod Sebers, lead operator; Jon Lein, operator; Eric Vaughn, lead maintenance mechanic; Curt Zuvela, operations supervisor; Daniel Korstad, instrument/electrical technician; and Les Krestel, pretreatment coordinator.


TPO welcomes news about environmental improvements at your facility for future articles in the Greening the Plant column. Send your ideas to [email protected] or call 715/277-4094.

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The staff identified other projects through the state Department of Enterprise Services (DES) Energy Program, then used its list of local Energy Service Companies (ESCOs) to conduct an audit, evalu-ate projects and help design, install and finance them. ESCO contrac-tors guaranteed the maximum project cost and projected energy savings, while DES energy engineers and the PUD provided long-term monitoring of project savings. The PUD also split projected energy savings between the plant and the contractor.

One such effort replaced a 300 hp centrifugal blower in an aera-tion basin with a 300 hp blower (Aerzen USA). The $325,000 modifi-cation saved 491,248 kWh annually. “Puget Sound Energy mounted meters on both blowers and measured the dif-ference in power consumption,” says Randolph. “Based on the calculated energy savings for the first year of operation, PUD sent an incentive check for $178,849.”

CONSULTANTS AND PUD

Two projects involved working with consul-tants. The first involved a complete mix aeration basin that had Nocardia asteroides bacteria problems. “The engineering firm suggested we switch to a plug flow mode to alleviate the prob-lem and improve the activated sludge process,” says Randolph.

The $292,000 project replaced ceramic dif-fusers with 299 Sanitaire Platinum Series flat-panel neoprene diffusers. It also included new baffles to change the flow pattern, a new hatch in the tank, additional modulating airflow valves and one more dissolved oxygen probe. Plant operators installed the hatch cover, valves and probe. Saving 90,635 kWh lowered annual electric costs by $11,800 and earned an incen-tive check for $51,338.

“Our process control improved during the first year of operating the new configuration,” says Randolph. “Because the improvement is difficult to measure, an engineering consultant is evaluating the ret-rofit to see if we’re receiving the promised benefits. The study will help us make better decisions about retrofitting another aeration basin.”

The most difficult project upsized 5-inch diffuser ports to 8-inch openings on two 36-inch outfalls to reduce head on the effluent pump. “A marine engineering company evaluated dispersion and mixing models, and then the state Department of Ecology approved the selection and modified our permit,” says Randolph. The project, which enabled the plant to sustain gravity flow longer, saved 98,000 kWh annually, lowered the electric bill by $6,762 and earned a $29,400 check from the PUD.

MORE IMPROVEMENTSA second energy audit identified additional projects, including

installation of a variable-frequency drive and programmable timer on the plant’s decorative water fountain. The fountain now cycles off from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.

Last fall, contractors replaced the main electrical switchgear feeding the plant, enclosed the switchboard in a sealed cabinet, and increased safety by adding a remote operator panel. While not specif-ically an energy-saving project, the staff also installed submetering devices to measure localized usage throughout the plant.

“Our operators don’t see electric bills or DES reports of reduced kilowatt-hours,” says Randolph. “They just know the electricity is on when they need it. To demonstrate that what they do does have an effect, we plan to develop dashboard indicators showing real-time energy usage. If we can see it and measure it, we can improve it.”

SOOTHING THE WAYFor the energy team at the Edmonds Wastewater Treatment Plant,

the most difficult part of the Snohomish County Public Utility District No. 1 10 Percent Energy Challenge was identifying the correct baseline and indicators.

“If we began with the wrong starting point or indicators, the result would not reflect the true story,” says Pamela Randolph, plant manager. “The engineers who design these facilities have a reason for everything that is here. Retrofits and improvements must be evaluated closely because everything that happens affects some part of the treatment process.”

Another challenge was keeping the staff members focused on sav-ing energy. Initially, they were excited and offered numerous suggestions, which the energy team evaluated.

“For example, one person suggested reducing the time fans ran in enclosed spaces,” says Randolph. “It certainly would have saved energy, but it wasn’t good practice.”

Rejecting ideas, even with the greatest tact and diplomacy, still wounded some participants.

Says Randolph, “Rekindling enthusiasm and convincing staff that they could make a difference were our most difficult motivational challenges.”

“With an average annual O&M budget of

$3.5 million and capital improvement fund

of $650,000, it made sense to accept the

PUD challenge. Since we joined the program

in 2010, we’ve completed three PUD projects

that reduced costs to the city and helped us

estimate ongoing savings.”PAMELA RANDOLPH

A graph illustrates the impact of energy efficiency enhancements on electric power consumption.


Without chemicals and without filtration, the 12 mgd design/ 8 mgd average wastewater treatment plant in Missoula, Mont., reliably reduces effluent phosphorus to 0.3 mg/L.

A 2004 upgrade costing $18 million converted the existing con-ventional aeration tanks (1 million gallons total volume) to the Modi-fied Johannesburg Process. Two new trains of bioreactors with a combined volume of 1.4 million gallons were added to the two exist-ing trains, more than doubling the aeration tankage.

In the future, a major share of plant effluent will go to fertilize a tree plantation instead of being discharged to the Clark Fork River.

OUT WITH NUTRIENTS

An innovative process enables the high degree of phosphorus removal. The conventional-looking concrete aeration tanks have been divided into a plug-flow arrangement of seven baffled cells each. Return activated sludge (RAS) is mixed with primary effluent as it enters the first of seven inline biological treatment cells. In the first tank (pre-anoxic), bacteria remove the residual nitrate-nitrogen from the RAS so that the nitrate demand for BOD is satisfied.

Flow proceeds to an anaerobic tank where it is mixed with a flow rich in volatile fatty acids (VFA) from the modified anaerobic digester (fermenter). Here, bacteria take in VFA as an energy source. The third tank in the bioreactor is anoxic; flow from the ends of the aera-tion tanks is recycled to provide nitrate-nitrogen removal.

The fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh tanks are conventional plug-flow aeration tanks. Here, BOD is removed, ammonia-nitrogen is converted to nitrate-nitrogen, and bacteria use the VFAs that were fed into the anaerobic tank to reduce the soluble phosphorus con-centration to levels as low as 0.01 mg/L.

LAB MONITORINGThe Missoula Wastewater Division has an on-site laboratory that

performs both process control and permit compliance testing. All analyses are done in-house except metals and toxic organics. The lab uses an auto-analyzer due to the large number of samples at low nutrient levels.

Gene Connell, treatment supervisor, compiles process data that staff members collect. Standard activated sludge process tests are performed daily. A complete phosphorus and nitrogen profile of each bioreactor cell is done weekly. The process data is compiled in a plant-developed Microsoft Access database. The results are plotted on graphs to display treatment efficiency. Process changes are made accordingly.

Because phosphorus is removed biologically, there is no need for the Missoula staff to add chemicals such as alum or ferric chloride. As a result, treatment is more sustainable. In addition, Missoula ratepay-ers save hundreds of dollars per day in chemical expenses. In the event that chemical addition becomes necessary, the plant has the ability to add ferric chloride to the splitter box before the secondary clarifiers. Starr Sullivan, wastewater division superintendent, observes, “Our staff members are definitely the ‘hope for the best, plan for the worst’ types.”

Careful oversight of the treatment process keeps effluent TSS at 3 mg/L, and the total effluent phosphorus averages 0.29 mg/L during the summer permit period. The facility also reduces nitrogen to an average 7 mg/L. To achieve similar phosphorus removal efficiency, most treatment facilities combine biological and chemical removal and use polishing filters. Missoula gets it done with neither chemi-cals nor filters.

CONTROL AUTOMATION

The Missoula team continues to investigate other methods of nutrient removal in anticipation of lower regulatory discharge limits to the Clark Fork River. The team is working with the private company AlgEvolve by cooperating with on-site piloting of photoreactors that

Innovation in BNRMISSOULA PLANT EFFLUENT CLEANSED OF MOST NUTRIENTS WILL SOON WATER 130 ACRES OF POPLAR TREES GROWN TO MATURITY AND HARVESTED FOR SAW LOGS

By Grant Weaver

HOW WE DO IT

LEFT: Missoula’s 12 mgd wastewa-ter treatment plant has achieved low-cost phosphorous reduction. BELOW: The city’s 1.6-acre poplar forest is home to an osprey nest. Reclaimed water from the plant helps grow the trees to market-able size for saw logs.

The Missoula team continues to investigate other methods of nutrient removal in anticipation of lower regulatory discharge limits to the Clark Fork River.

grow algae to remove phosphorus to very low levels while creating a usable end product and avoiding cre-ation of undesirable chemical sludges.

The facility’s SCADA system uses the Wonderware System Platform (Invensys) and Allen-Bradley (Rock-well Automation) programmable logic controllers (PLCs) on a fiber-optic network. All servers and switches have online redundancy. The system allows tight control with low staff-ing. The five plant operators work 10-hour, four-day shifts to provide seven-day-per-week coverage. They rotate on-call duties, and Specter’s

Win-911 automated call-out system alerts them to problems after hours.The latest major plant upgrade, completed in 2012, replaced the headworks

building at a cost of $9 million. Three 100 hp submersible pumps (Sulzer Pumps Solutions) lift influent into the plant. In front of the pumps are 1/4-inch FlexRake bar screens (Duperon) that lift the screenings from the lower level channel to the main-floor washing and compacting equipment (Huber Technology). Grit is removed using PISTA Grit vortex and grit washing sys-tems (Smith & Loveless). A system manufactured by AMBIO Biolfiltration keeps headworks odors from affecting the community.

After anaerobic digestion and dewatering with a centrifuge, biosolids are conveyed next door to a private composting facility. Since 1975, dewatered sludge has been processed using a system from EKO Compost (a company founded by a professor from the University of Montana in Missoula) that bags the composted biosolids for retail and wholesale customers. The compost

operation uses community yard waste and wood waste as bulking agents.Missoula uses UV disinfection (TrojanUV) in place of elemental chlorine.

The operators have found UV much easier and safer to use, and the system eliminates one chemical influence on the river.

WATERING POPLARS

The city has piloted a beneficial reuse program, using a portion of plant effluent to irrigate a 1.6-acre hybrid poplar tree plot. Instead of discharging the small amounts of phosphorus, nitrogen and other constituents to the Clark Fork River, those constituents are taken up by trees.

Pilot project results are encouraging: Testing in and around the grove shows no significant negative effects on groundwater or soil, and the poplars are thriving. The trees have grown from 12-inch whips in 2009 to trees that now stand 13 feet tall. Encouraged by the success, city council members have authorized the lease, construction and long-term management of a 130-acre hybrid poplar tree farm near the facility. It will be planted in spring 2014.

This reuse of effluent complements Missoula’s biosolids practices. EKO Compost will use the tree pruning material for a compost bulking agent. The mature trees will be harvested and sold as saw logs. Planting the new forest and bringing it to maturity in 12 years will cost an estimated $1.3 million; the saw logs’ value is projected at $2 million.

Sullivan estimates that at maturity the 70,000 poplar trees will drink up one million gallons of effluent per day. “The expansion has the potential to remove nearly 20 percent of what our current discharge is to the river,” he says.

ABOUT THE AUTHORGrant Weaver, P.E., an ABC Class IV wastewater operator, is president

of The Water Planet Company, a wastewater treatment consultancy in New London, Conn. He can be reached at Grantweaver@thewaterplanet company.com

Rob Cromwell, plant operator at one of Missoula’s four Johannesburg process aeration tanks, with poplar trees in the background.


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Without chemicals and without filtration, the 12 mgd design/ 8 mgd average wastewater treatment plant in Missoula, Mont., reliably reduces effluent phosphorus to 0.3 mg/L.

A 2004 upgrade costing $18 million converted the existing con-ventional aeration tanks (1 million gallons total volume) to the Modi-fied Johannesburg Process. Two new trains of bioreactors with a combined volume of 1.4 million gallons were added to the two exist-ing trains, more than doubling the aeration tankage.

In the future, a major share of plant effluent will go to fertilize a tree plantation instead of being discharged to the Clark Fork River.

OUT WITH NUTRIENTS

An innovative process enables the high degree of phosphorus removal. The conventional-looking concrete aeration tanks have been divided into a plug-flow arrangement of seven baffled cells each. Return activated sludge (RAS) is mixed with primary effluent as it enters the first of seven inline biological treatment cells. In the first tank (pre-anoxic), bacteria remove the residual nitrate-nitrogen from the RAS so that the nitrate demand for BOD is satisfied.

Flow proceeds to an anaerobic tank where it is mixed with a flow rich in volatile fatty acids (VFA) from the modified anaerobic digester (fermenter). Here, bacteria take in VFA as an energy source. The third tank in the bioreactor is anoxic; flow from the ends of the aera-tion tanks is recycled to provide nitrate-nitrogen removal.

The fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh tanks are conventional plug-flow aeration tanks. Here, BOD is removed, ammonia-nitrogen is converted to nitrate-nitrogen, and bacteria use the VFAs that were fed into the anaerobic tank to reduce the soluble phosphorus con-centration to levels as low as 0.01 mg/L.

LAB MONITORINGThe Missoula Wastewater Division has an on-site laboratory that

performs both process control and permit compliance testing. All analyses are done in-house except metals and toxic organics. The lab uses an auto-analyzer due to the large number of samples at low nutrient levels.

Gene Connell, treatment supervisor, compiles process data that staff members collect. Standard activated sludge process tests are performed daily. A complete phosphorus and nitrogen profile of each bioreactor cell is done weekly. The process data is compiled in a plant-developed Microsoft Access database. The results are plotted on graphs to display treatment efficiency. Process changes are made accordingly.

Because phosphorus is removed biologically, there is no need for the Missoula staff to add chemicals such as alum or ferric chloride. As a result, treatment is more sustainable. In addition, Missoula ratepay-ers save hundreds of dollars per day in chemical expenses. In the event that chemical addition becomes necessary, the plant has the ability to add ferric chloride to the splitter box before the secondary clarifiers. Starr Sullivan, wastewater division superintendent, observes, “Our staff members are definitely the ‘hope for the best, plan for the worst’ types.”

Careful oversight of the treatment process keeps effluent TSS at 3 mg/L, and the total effluent phosphorus averages 0.29 mg/L during the summer permit period. The facility also reduces nitrogen to an average 7 mg/L. To achieve similar phosphorus removal efficiency, most treatment facilities combine biological and chemical removal and use polishing filters. Missoula gets it done with neither chemi-cals nor filters.

CONTROL AUTOMATION

The Missoula team continues to investigate other methods of nutrient removal in anticipation of lower regulatory discharge limits to the Clark Fork River. The team is working with the private company AlgEvolve by cooperating with on-site piloting of photoreactors that

Innovation in BNRMISSOULA PLANT EFFLUENT CLEANSED OF MOST NUTRIENTS WILL SOON WATER 130 ACRES OF POPLAR TREES GROWN TO MATURITY AND HARVESTED FOR SAW LOGS

By Grant Weaver

HOW WE DO IT

LEFT: Missoula’s 12 mgd wastewa-ter treatment plant has achieved low-cost phosphorous reduction. BELOW: The city’s 1.6-acre poplar forest is home to an osprey nest. Reclaimed water from the plant helps grow the trees to market-able size for saw logs.

The Missoula team continues to investigate other methods of nutrient removal in anticipation of lower regulatory discharge limits to the Clark Fork River.

grow algae to remove phosphorus to very low levels while creating a usable end product and avoiding cre-ation of undesirable chemical sludges.

The facility’s SCADA system uses the Wonderware System Platform (Invensys) and Allen-Bradley (Rock-well Automation) programmable logic controllers (PLCs) on a fiber-optic network. All servers and switches have online redundancy. The system allows tight control with low staff-ing. The five plant operators work 10-hour, four-day shifts to provide seven-day-per-week coverage. They rotate on-call duties, and Specter’s

Win-911 automated call-out system alerts them to problems after hours.The latest major plant upgrade, completed in 2012, replaced the headworks

building at a cost of $9 million. Three 100 hp submersible pumps (Sulzer Pumps Solutions) lift influent into the plant. In front of the pumps are 1/4-inch FlexRake bar screens (Duperon) that lift the screenings from the lower level channel to the main-floor washing and compacting equipment (Huber Technology). Grit is removed using PISTA Grit vortex and grit washing sys-tems (Smith & Loveless). A system manufactured by AMBIO Biolfiltration keeps headworks odors from affecting the community.

After anaerobic digestion and dewatering with a centrifuge, biosolids are conveyed next door to a private composting facility. Since 1975, dewatered sludge has been processed using a system from EKO Compost (a company founded by a professor from the University of Montana in Missoula) that bags the composted biosolids for retail and wholesale customers. The compost

operation uses community yard waste and wood waste as bulking agents.Missoula uses UV disinfection (TrojanUV) in place of elemental chlorine.

The operators have found UV much easier and safer to use, and the system eliminates one chemical influence on the river.

WATERING POPLARS

The city has piloted a beneficial reuse program, using a portion of plant effluent to irrigate a 1.6-acre hybrid poplar tree plot. Instead of discharging the small amounts of phosphorus, nitrogen and other constituents to the Clark Fork River, those constituents are taken up by trees.

Pilot project results are encouraging: Testing in and around the grove shows no significant negative effects on groundwater or soil, and the poplars are thriving. The trees have grown from 12-inch whips in 2009 to trees that now stand 13 feet tall. Encouraged by the success, city council members have authorized the lease, construction and long-term management of a 130-acre hybrid poplar tree farm near the facility. It will be planted in spring 2014.

This reuse of effluent complements Missoula’s biosolids practices. EKO Compost will use the tree pruning material for a compost bulking agent. The mature trees will be harvested and sold as saw logs. Planting the new forest and bringing it to maturity in 12 years will cost an estimated $1.3 million; the saw logs’ value is projected at $2 million.

Sullivan estimates that at maturity the 70,000 poplar trees will drink up one million gallons of effluent per day. “The expansion has the potential to remove nearly 20 percent of what our current discharge is to the river,” he says.

ABOUT THE AUTHORGrant Weaver, P.E., an ABC Class IV wastewater operator, is president

of The Water Planet Company, a wastewater treatment consultancy in New London, Conn. He can be reached at Grantweaver@thewaterplanet company.com

Rob Cromwell, plant operator at one of Missoula’s four Johannesburg process aeration tanks, with poplar trees in the background.


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Franklin Electric relocates headquartersFranklin Electric relocated to its new World Headquarters and Engineer-

ing Center in Fort Wayne, Ind. The 118,800-square-foot facility houses the company’s 245 employees with room for future growth, as well as a 24,000- square-foot testing lab.

Asahi/America names regional sales manager

Asahi/America promoted Mike Hansen to Western regional sales man-ager. He will oversee the company’s team of sales representatives west of the Mississippi River, and continue to serve as district sales manager for distribu-tors in Northern California and Northern Nevada.

Aeration Industries launches website

Aeration Industries launched a new website, www.aireo2.com. The prod-ucts and services site includes the company markets served, upgrades and retrofits, and a representative locator.

ProSoft Technology names president, CEO

ProSoft Technology named Thomas Crone president and CEO of the industrial communication company.

Thomas & Betts combines compression connector brands

Thomas & Betts combined its two brands of compression connectors, Blackburn and Color-Keyed, into one brand, Blackburn Featuring the Color-Keyed System.

Tata & Howard acquire Leach Engineering

Tata & Howard acquired Leach Engineering Consultants, a civil engineer-ing firm in St. Johnsbury, Vt. Leach specializes in environmental engineering and wastewater solutions. Gary A. Leach, P.E., founder and chief executive officer, will continue to lead the Vermont office and also serve as vice presi-dent of Tata & Howard.

industry news

Pride. It speaks volumes. Hear what operators like Greg have to say

each month in Water System Operator.

FREE subscription at www.wsomag.com

Greg Swanson, Utilities General Manager,

City of Moline, Ill.

“I believe plants must offer tours and interact with the public. Water is grossly underappreciated and unvalued in our country. Part of the plant operator’s job is to elevate the public’s understanding and appreciation.”

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Franklin Electric relocates headquartersFranklin Electric relocated to its new World Headquarters and Engineer-

ing Center in Fort Wayne, Ind. The 118,800-square-foot facility houses the company’s 245 employees with room for future growth, as well as a 24,000- square-foot testing lab.

Asahi/America names regional sales manager

Asahi/America promoted Mike Hansen to Western regional sales man-ager. He will oversee the company’s team of sales representatives west of the Mississippi River, and continue to serve as district sales manager for distribu-tors in Northern California and Northern Nevada.

Aeration Industries launches website

Aeration Industries launched a new website, www.aireo2.com. The prod-ucts and services site includes the company markets served, upgrades and retrofits, and a representative locator.

ProSoft Technology names president, CEO

ProSoft Technology named Thomas Crone president and CEO of the industrial communication company.

Thomas & Betts combines compression connector brands

Thomas & Betts combined its two brands of compression connectors, Blackburn and Color-Keyed, into one brand, Blackburn Featuring the Color-Keyed System.

Tata & Howard acquire Leach Engineering

Tata & Howard acquired Leach Engineering Consultants, a civil engineer-ing firm in St. Johnsbury, Vt. Leach specializes in environmental engineering and wastewater solutions. Gary A. Leach, P.E., founder and chief executive officer, will continue to lead the Vermont office and also serve as vice presi-dent of Tata & Howard.

industry news

Pride. It speaks volumes. Hear what operators like Greg have to say

each month in Water System Operator.

FREE subscription at www.wsomag.com

Greg Swanson, Utilities General Manager,

City of Moline, Ill.

“I believe plants must offer tours and interact with the public. Water is grossly underappreciated and unvalued in our country. Part of the plant operator’s job is to elevate the public’s understanding and appreciation.”


ASK BEN RILES WHY THE MOBERLY (MO.) WASTEWATER Treatment Plant won a state award for its biosolids program and he gives part of the credit to city leaders, who decided nearly two decades ago to adopt an emerging technology when it was time to replace an aging facility.

Riles, named chief operator in 2007 after eight years as an operator, has been “kind of spoiled” while working at the dual-cell sequential batch reac-tor (SBR) facility, designed and built by Aqua-Aerobic Systems. “I’ve never worked at an older plant,” he says.

Although some people questioned the city’s decision to adopt the SBR technology in 1995, Riles observes, “It works quite well, especially under adverse conditions. It adapts and it overcomes.”

A side benefit of the new plant was the decision to locate it next to a 150-acre parcel the city bought so it could apply biosolids on its own property.

The convenience of the biosolids program was a factor last year when Moberly (population 14,000) received the Biosolids Management Award in the small facility category at the annual conference of the Missouri Water Environment Association.

NO MORE HAULING

The city started land-applying biosolids in 1987, trucking the material to local farms. That changed in 1997 with the switch to the city-owned Waste-water Farm. “Most plants just don’t have their own ground, but we have 150 acres, 84 of which are actually in our land application program,” Riles says. A little more than half the permitted land is cultivated, and the city makes money by leasing it to a farmer who rotates corn, soybeans and other crops. The other half of the permitted land is forested and offers area for biosolids

FARMLAND NEXT TO THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT IS PART OF THE RECIPE FOR AN AWARD-WINNING BIOSOLIDS PROGRAM IN MOBERLY, MO.

By Pete Litterski

To Home


Closeapplication during harvest periods.

Besides generating income from the tenant farmer, having land next to the treatment plant saves the costs of hauling and soil testing at private farms.

NO VIOLATIONS

In the award application, Riles reported that the city had no violations in the past five years of quarterly tests on the Class B biosolids from two aero-bic digesters. In 2012, the city met U.S. EPA standards for the Specific Oxygen Uptake Rate (SOUR) test and Volatile Solids Reduction methods. In previous years, the city has regularly passed at least one of the tests each quarter and usually met both standards.

The city consistently meets the soil-quality standards on its land applica-tion site, as well. Regulations call for testing the soil every five years for pH, but Riles tests annually.

BUILT: 1997TREATMENT LEVEL: SecondaryTREATMENT PROCESS: Dual-cell sequential batch reactorBIOSOLIDS PROCESS: Aerobic digestionBIOSOLIDS VOLUME: 489 dry tons (2012)BIOSOLIDS USE: Land applicationWEBSITE: http://moberlymo.org/Government/ Public_Utilities/wastewaterplant.htmlGPS COORDINATES: Latitude: 39°25’38.40” N; Longitude: 92°22’32.65” W

profile Moberly (Mo.) Wastewater Treatment Plant

M

“Most plants just don’t have their

own ground, but we have 150

acres, 84 of which are actually in

our land application program.”BEN RILES

Biosolids from the Moberly plant are applied using a reel-pivot irrigation system. (Photography by David Owens)

The next-door land application site means Moberly no longer needs trucks to haul biosolids. Instead, the liquid material is pumped from two holding basins to the Wastewa-ter Farm, where it is applied by a reel/pivot irrigation system. “I can put down easily 187,000 to 200,000 gallons of biosolids per day when the conditions are right,” Riles says.

SIMPLE PROCESS

The Moberly treatment plant has an average flow of 2.5 mgd and a permitted maximum capacity of 5 mgd. During rain events when flow from the city’s combined sewer sys-tem increases sharply, influent can be diverted to lagoons still in place at the city’s former treatment plant sites, allowing the system to handle up to 7 mgd on a short-term basis. With a heavy rain, the flow can jump from 2 mgd to 5 mgd within hours, but Riles says, “The quality of bio-solids and effluent never really varies.”

Most of the dry-weather flow comes from residential and commercial customers. The city’s few industrial customers pose no challenges to the wastewater system. The treatment process starts with a grit removal screen before the flow is directed to one of the two SBRs. From the reactors, wasted sludge is directed to a pair of aerobic digesters and the liquid effluent passes through a UV disinfection system before discharge. A 2007 plant improvement project added a second biosolids holding basin and upgraded the digesters, “so we could do a better job of controlling biosolids quality,” says Riles.

The city installed Tornado mixers (RWL Water Group – Aeromix) in both digesters. In the new above-ground concrete holding basin, aerators (TideFlex Technologies) mix the biosolids with compressed air. In the existing in-ground

holding basin, mixers (Aqua-Aerobic Systems) maintain the consistency of biosolids awaiting land application.

PROCESS CONTROL

Riles operates the biosolids program with a team that includes Doug Farrow, Richard Swank, Donnie Gregory, and Garrett Foote.

To make sure the application system works properly, the operators keep a close eye on solids content in the storage basins. “We like to maintain between 2 and 3 percent solids,” Riles says. “If it gets up to 5 percent, we will actually add effluent to get it back down. If you put it on too thick, you can coat the ground, and what you want is for the ground to be able to absorb it.”

The irrigation system (Kifco Ag-Rain) includes a slurry pump, helping operators apply biosolids at an agronomic rate. Operators monitor soil con-

“We like to maintain between 2 and 3 percent solids. If it gets up to 5 percent, we will actually add

effluent to get it back down. If you put it on too thick, you can coat the ground,

and what you want is for the ground to be able to absorb it.”BEN RILES

Kaeser FB790C blower mixers outside of the aeration and mixing tanks.

The Moberly team includes, from left, Ben Riles, chief operator; Doug Farrow, Donnie Gregory and Richard Swank, plant operators; and Garrett Foote, seasonal/part-time worker.

ditions: If the ground is frozen, or if it is saturated from rain or snow, they do not apply biosolids.

The two holding basins (1.2 mil-lion gallons each) provide 180 days of storage capacity. The basins have never reached full capacity, but the city was nearing that point before building the second basin. If the basins ever reach capacity, “We can decant water off the top and send it back to the influent pump station,” says Riles. The basins are not covered, but Riles has seen no significant problems from rail or evaporation.

The storage capacity paid off in 2012, when wet weather and a long win-ter made land application challenging. In that year the plant generated 489 dry tons of biosolids and the team land-applied just 283 dry tons.

To finance its biosolids operation and recent plant improvements, the city has used State Revolving Fund loans and federal stimulus funding. The upgrades have proven to be a sound investment in protecting water quality and putting biosolids to beneficial use at a highly affordable cost.

REUSING THE OLDThe Moberly Wastewa-

ter Treatment Plant is a modern facility that can overcome most challenges that come its way. The one difficulty can be the volume of influent when heavy rains suddenly swamp the combined sewer system.

Ben Riles, chief plant operator, says the city has separated some stormwater lines from the combined system to ease the flows and is studying how much work and money it would take to separate more sewers in the future. Further separating the two systems won’t affect the biosolids operation, but “It will reduce flows to the plant,” says Riles, “and we will be able to treat more effec-tively in all conditions.”

For now, Moberly is doing some recycling. When building its sequen-tial batch reactor treatment plant in 1997, the city converted large lagoons at two former treatment plants to serve as combined sewer overflow retention basins.

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Ben Riles prepares to pull the sprayer (Kifco Ag-Rain) into position for biosolids distribution.


: Specifically, how might a clean-water plant superintendent, plant manager or operator make use of the Value of Water Coalition campaign?

Kelly: One way is simply to point to this website, to the facts posted there, and to pull those facts and use them in any flyer they produce, in any presentation they make, in any tour they conduct. Over time we hope this information will turn into electronic items they can cut and paste into bill stuffers or other materials. There is one very short YouTube video that tells how water is treated. Operators can show that to people and accomplish a lot of education in a very short time.

O’Neill: We believe the information is succinct enough, clear enough, startling enough if you will, that people will really pay attention to it. We encourage operators to ‘watch this space’ — keep coming back, and know that the information and the messaging on the website have been tested.

: The information on the website is sorted under five words: Water

is irreplaceable, shared, innovative, clean, green. How were those catego-ries selected?

Kelly: The research found that those terms really resonated — people seemed to care about them and understand them better than others.

: What’s the reasoning behind the emphasis on social media?

Kelly: It’s our primary method of connecting people to this issue. It’s an effective and inexpensive way of getting a message out, short of having mil-lions of dollars to invest in TV, billboards, radio and magazines. We are also using paid social media instead of just organically trying to grow followers. The Glover Park Group is very savvy in advising us on how to use paid social media to increase leverage.

: How are you measuring the impact and suc-

cess of this effort?O’Neill: It’s easy to do things like count hits on the

website and followers on Twitter, but we want to dig deeper than that. We’ll go back with the same survey we did originally, ask the same baseline questions, and see if there has been a change in understanding and a change in behavior.

: What outreach are you doing to the operator

community?O’Neill: We are getting information out through our usual networks —

our newsletters and other vehicles. We’ll be raising awareness of what the Value of Water Coalition is doing and aspires to do, and the tools available, but we’re also listening to what the water professionals think are the gaps in communication that our coalition can help fill.

: Is there a public affairs component to this? An effort to influence

the elected officials who make decisions about infrastructure investments?Kelly: That is not a part of what we chartered ourselves to do. The idea

is that once people understand the seriousness of a failing infrastructure and the value of water, they will demand that we protect that very critical resource.

We all realize it’s going to take some time. The public is overwhelmed

with information. There are a lot of issues, and water is just one of them. If we are to have the impact we need, this has to be a long-term project. It takes time, it takes money, it takes dedication. We can’t be impatient. We have to be strategic. One thing that’s apparent about the Value of Water Coalition is the members’ commitment to the mission.

: What parting words do you have for TPO readers?O’Neill: We’re interested in their ideas and thoughts about the Value of

Water campaign. We’d like them to use the Contact Us link on the website so we can put them on our email list and start a conversation.

“We believe the information is succinct enough, clear enough,

startling enough if you will, that people will really pay attention

to it. We encourage operators to ‘watch this space — keep

coming back, and know that the information and the messaging

on the website have been tested.”EILEEN O’NEILL

“I think operators know they can no longer

just stay behind the berm and do great work.

They have to let the public know they are the

defenders of public health and the environment —

they are water heroes. There is a need to

elevate the profession.”LINDA KELLY

4 New & Used Equipment 4 Free Subscription 4 Videos and Podcasts 4 Article Reprints 4 Online Exclusives 4 Digital Editions 4 Editor’s Blog

www.tpomag.com

IN MY WORDS

It’s been obvious for years: The nation’s public infrastructure is decaying and is getting too little attention and investment.

That’s especially true of those out-of-sight and out-of-mind sewer and water pipes and wastewater and drinking water treatment plants. Over the years, various initiatives have sprung up to call attention to infrastructure and the need to restore it. Among these was the American Society of Civil Engineers’ biennial Report Card on Infrastructure.

The newest effort, focused solely on water infrastructure, is the Value of Water Coalition. It’s a joint initiative of major water and wastewater associa-tions and businesses, and its aim is to educate the public about the impor-tance of clean, safe and reliable water for today and future generations.

The Water Environment Federation is one of six association members of the coalition. Eileen O’Neill, Ph.D., interim executive director, and Linda Kelly, senior director of development and strategic alliances, talked about the coalition in an interview with Treatment Plant Operator.

: There have been campaigns on behalf of public infrastructure

before. What makes this one different and in your view more effective?O’Neill: The unique and groundbreaking nature of this effort is that we

have six private-sector players and six major water associations in the United States onboard and prepared to speak with one voice, a strong voice. It’s very exciting to see all 12 of these organizations committed to doing what we can together to up the ante and raise the visibility of water infrastructure and the need to invest in it.

: Is it possible that in the future the

coalition membership will expand?O’Neill: We are discussing as a group how

we might best grow. Working with 12 entities is exciting but also challenging. We don’t want to over-burden the group with too much struc-ture. At this stage we want to see how the member organizations can work together most effectively, each bringing their own strengths.

Kelly: The coalition’s structure is not nearly as important as our message and how we can get it out. As the campaign grows, we’ll be seeking help in delivering that message in many different ways. Looking ahead, there may be opportunities for fundraising with other water-sector organizations to help us magnify our impact on the public.

: How did the coalition go about defin-

ing its message? Kelly: We all agreed to focus on water infra-

structure and the need for investment, and we

looked for someone who could help us do that in a pro-fessional way. We put together a request for proposals, eval-uated several firms and selected the Glover Park Group [strategic communi-cations firm based in Wash-ington, D.C.].

Next we went to find out what the public knew about infrastructure and how important it was to them. With the Glover Park Group, we did qualitative and quantitative research. From that we learned not to go immediately to the public pound-ing our fists on the table and saying, ‘We have to get the infrastructure updated and you need to pay more.’ We found that the public needs to understand water systems and how water is important in every aspect of their lives — from their own personal water footprint to the way water is used to make products they encounter every day. Then we can build up to the fact that there needs to be a system that brings water to them and takes it away, and that the water has to be cleaned by innovative technologies and professional people.

: What form does this campaign take so far? What is its public face?

Kelly: Right now, it’s a social media and digital campaign focused on a website [http://thevalueofwater.org].

: What is being done around that

website to get the message out far and wide?Kelly: It includes reaching out through

Twitter, YouTube and GooglePlus. It also involves search engine optimization — drawing people to the website who have searched the Internet for anything having to do with water or water quality. The idea is to keep it simple and keep it focused on the one issue.

: What makes this campaign meaning-

ful to the people who operate what the WEF now calls water resource recovery facilities?

Kelly: Operators are interested in the role they play in helping the public understand the systems they run. I think operators know they can no longer just stay behind the berm and do great work. They have to let the public know they are the defenders of public health and the environment — they are water heroes. There is a need to elevate the profession.

One VoiceA BROAD-BASED COALITION OF INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS AND BUSINESSES AIMS TO RAISE THE PROFILE OF INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT AS A NATIONAL PRIORITY

By Ted J. Rulseh

Linda KellyEileen O’Neill

What is this coalition?The Value of Water Coalition consists

of public and private members of the water industry who have come together at a time when water infrastructure is at risk. The 12 members are:

Water Environment FederationXylem Inc.U.S. Water AllianceVeolia WaterNational Association of Water CompaniesUnited WaterNational Association of Clean Water AgenciesMWH GlobalAssociation of Metropolitan Water AgenciesCH2M HILLAmerican Water Works AssociationAmerican Water


biosolids, allowing water to pass through flexible drainage elements. Biosolids enter-ing the cylinder are continuously rotated and pressed by the piston to reach the limit of mechanical dewatering. The cake is automatically discharged. Digested biosol-

ids can be dewatered to auto-thermal condi-tions before incineration, lowering capital and operational costs for dry-ing. 804/756-7696; www.degremont-technologies.com.

SCREW PRESS

The ACAT screw press from Kusters Water, a division of Kusters Zima Corp., offers slow rotational speed, low maintenance, low noise and low energy consumption. All components in contact with biosolids are made of corrosion-resistant mate-rials, such as 304SS or 316SS. The base frame is made of carbon steel and factory-painted. The only wear part is the screw sealing, which lasts 5,000 to 15,000 hours. 864/576-0660; www.kusterswater.com.

ROTARY FAN PRESS

The compact, slow moving, quiet design of the Rotary Fan Press from Prime Solution Inc. integrates with wastewater facilities, often with no building modifications. Continuous dewa-tering within enclosed vertical channels yields high throughput per unit of floor space. It offers easy and fast startup and shutdown and minimal operator attention. Pressure increases as biosolids move slowly through a tapered

channel. Friction intensifies as the material compresses against two rotating filter screens. Filtrate drains through the screens. Cake aver-ages 18 to 24 percent solids and reaches up to 60 percent in some appli-cations. 269/694-6666; www.psirotary.com.

MOBILE BELT FILTER PRESS

The Model 3DPTM trailered mobile belt filter press from Stewart Spreading has a variable-speed paddle wheel. It provides full belt-width distribution, and an independent gravity zone that allows for higher production capacity and higher cake sol-ids. A spiral wedge applies increasing cake pressure over the entire length of the belt for effective expressing of filtrate with excellent cake retention. A vertical arrangement allows filtrate pans under each roll to keep filtrate from falling on adjacent rolls, eliminating filtrate reabsorption and improving cake solids. 815/695-5667; www.stewartspreading.com.

Centrifuges/

Separators

DECANTER CENTRIFUGEThe ALDEC G3 decanter centri-

fuge from Alfa Laval offers a 2Touch control package that makes it easy to monitor, adjust and improve all

Belt Filter/Rotary Presses

BELT FILTER PRESSThe 1.7-meter trailer-mounted

belt filter press from Bright Tech-nologies includes a control room with insulated FRP walls, air condi-tioning, electric heat, a refrigerator, stainless steel desk, tool storage, locker, closed circuit TV and remote operator controls. The modular design allows the room to be custom manufactured to fit most single-drop trailers. Units are made for rapid setup with folding conveyor and operator walkways. No special lifting equipment is required. 800/253-0532; www.brightbeltpress.com.

THREE-BELT PRESS

The Sentry three-belt press from Charter Machine Company has a 4-foot initial gravity deck for easy viewing. A belt drive and vari-able-frequency drive enable belt speed selection independent of the

pressure section. This makes thin biosolids become more manageable and allows higher cake solids to be achieved. Belt alignment is main-tained by a center-pivot design, minimizing belt stretch. A vertical roller arrangement allows easier conveyor maintenance. Rilsan-coated one-piece pillow block housings with gasketed end plates house self-aligning double-roll spherical-type bearings with quadruple lip seals. Machined and polished shafts are held in place with a lock ring, eliminating slip-page or misalignment. 732/548-4400; www.chartermachine.com.

CONTAINER FILTER

Sludge Mate container filters from Flo Trend Systems dewater bio-solids and other materials. The closed-system design provides com-plete odor control, prevents spillage, minimizes maintenance and shields against weather. Units have 10-gauge reinforced walls and a seven-gauge carbon steel floor. Options include peaked roofs with gasketed bolted-down access hatches, drainage ports, inlet manifolds, floor filters and side-to-side rolling tarps. Units in 5- to 40-cubic-yard capacities available as roll-offs, on trailers and tipping-stand mounted. 713/699-0152; www.flotrend.com.

ROTATING BIOSOLIDS PRESS

The Dehydris Twist from Infilco Degremont uses a rotating cylinder and moving piston that travels within the cylinder to continuously press

product focus

Biosolids Management/HeadworksBy Craig Mandli

Dehydris Twist from Infilco Degremont

ALDEC G3 decanter centrifuge from Alfa Laval

Sludge Mate container filters from Flo Trend Systems

ACAT screw press from Kusters Water, a division of

Kusters Zima Corp.

Rotary Fan Press from Prime Solution Inc.

Belt filter press from Bright Technologies

Sentry three-belt press from Charter Machine Company

Model 3DPTM trailered mobile belt filter press from Stewart Spreading

(continued)

operating parameters to meet changing requirements and varying inputs and conditions. The smaller conveyor diameter makes room for more liq-uid in the pond and allows higher bowl wall pressures for a 10 percent boost in processing capacity or drier cake. Power Plates reduce the power consumption by up to 40 percent and reduce CO2 emissions. 866/253-2528; www.alfalaval.us.

Grinders/Shredders

SCREENER/GRINDERThe Dimminutor7 from Franklin Miller provides

automatic screening and grinding of wastewater solids in straight-through channels and wet wells. It reduces plastics, wood, rags and other solids to fine bits, pro-tecting pumps and other downstream equipment. It uses a smooth, continuously rotating design with high torque. Three bidirectional rotary cutters intermesh at close clearance with stationary cutters, reduc-ing solids to a size small enough to pass through a sizing screen. 973/535-9200; www.franklinmiller.com.

SUBMERSIBLE SHREDDER PUMP

The S3SHR 3-inch hydraulic-drive submersible shredder pump from Hydra-Tech Pumps continuously rips and shears solids with 360-degree shredding action. It uses an open-vane shredder impeller with tungsten carbide cutting tip. Compact size allows it to fit in tight spaces. A guide rail assembly is available for stationary applications. Combined with HT11 to HT20

power units, it handles flows up to 450 gpm. The safe and variable-speed hydraulic drive can be used where electric power is hazardous or impractical. 570/645-3779; www.hydra-tech.com.

SCREW CENTRIFUGAL PUMP

Triton screw centrifugal pumps from Vaughan Company handle thick biosolids, large or stringy solids, shear-sensitive fluids and delicate or highly abrasive materials. Features include steep performance curves, nonover-loading power characteristics, heavy-duty power frames and a flushless mechanical seal to eliminate water flush requirements. A water-flushed mechanical seal or packing is avail-able. 888/249-2467; www.chopperpumps.com.

Grit Handling/Removal/Hauling

CONTINUOUS BAG SYSTEMThe Longofill continuous bag system from

Paxxo can connect to the discharge point of machines used to move, dewater or compact screen-ings, grit and biosolids. Material is then deposited in a 90-meter-long continuous bag for odor contain-ment and spillage control. The cassette bag is easy to seal, and the material and odors are trapped inside, cutting down development of bac-teria and fungus spores. 770/502-0055; www.paxxo.us.

GRIT AND GREASE REMOVAL SYSTEM

The Grit & Grease removal system from Schreiber has two rectangular concrete channels that separate and collect grit and grease. One channel settles particles and the other collects grease using an air-skim-ming system. A rotating spiral flow pat-tern washes organics from the grit and deposits it in a trough at the bottom of the channel. A grit pump on a traveling bridge pumps the grit to an elevated trough sloped at one end of the structure to transfer the grit slurry to a grit classifier for further washing and dewatering. Floating grease is transported to one end of the channel by an air-skimming grease removal system. Air is directed onto the surface of the grease channel in the direc-tion of a rotating screw conveyor, which lifts the grease into a collec-tion container. 205/655-7466; www.schreiberwater.com.

EFFICIENT GRIT REMOVAL SYSTEM

The PISTA 360 from Smith & Love-less removes grit efficiently with a V-FORCE BAFFLE that prevents short-circuiting and allows 360-degree rota-tion through the inlet and outlet.

Increased chamber velocity dur-ing low flow enables an extended grit path so that more grit is cap-

tured on the flat floor. Flow velocity stays at 3.5 feet per second peak and 1.6 feet per second minimum with no additional downstream flow control device. It improves control of water elevations without a submerged weir resulting in a smaller footprint and construction cost savings. The system ensures 95 percent grit removal efficiency down to a 140-mesh particle size. Units range from 0.5 to 10 mgd capacity and can be constructed of concrete or steel. 800/898-9122; www.smithandloveless.com.

LOW-MOISTURE GRIT GENERATOR

The WEMCO Hydrogritter from Weir Specialty Pumps / WEMCO Pump includes a pump, cyclone separator and dewatering classifier. The pump pulls grit from the grit chamber and feeds it to the cyclone separator, which con-centrates it and reduces the volume of liquid so that a smaller and more economical classifier can be used. The slurry from the pump is converted to rotational motion as it enters the cyclone inlet head. The resulting centrifugal force acts on the grit particles, driving them to the cyclone wall where they migrate down decreasing-diameter sections, discharging through the cyclone apex. The grit is then concentrated and dis-charged into the spiral classifier, where it is dewatered. The system can remove 95 percent of grit size 150 mesh and larger with a spe-cific gravity of 2.65. 801/359-8731; www.weirsp.com.

Screening Systems

SCRAPER-STRAINERACRS automatic scraper-strainers from Acme Engineering Prod-

ucts provide automatic removal of solids and large particles using

WEMCO Hydrogritter from Weir Specialty Pumps / WEMCO Pump

Longofill continuous bag system from Paxxo

Dimminutor7 from Franklin Miller

Grit & Grease removal system from Schreiber

S3SHR submersible shredder pump from Hydra-Tech Pumps

Triton screw centrifugal pumps from Vaughan Company

PISTA 360 from Smith & Loveless


WWW.KELLERAMERICA.COM 877-253-5537 [email protected]

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ti � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � �

ware monitors loading rates for land applica-tion of biosolids. It also tracks application locations, methods, amounts and who applies the material. A reporting section allows users to generate limit, application and nutrient reports to maintain proper recordkeeping and stay compliant with reporting requirements. Its use enhances communication between the preparer, applier and landowner. 800/670-1867; www.allmaxsoftware.com.

ROLL-OFF DEWATERING UNIT

The Roll-off Dewatering Unit from AQUA-Zyme Disposal Systems can reduce biosolids volume with reductions in BOD, COD, FOG and

TSS. Solids can be landfill-ready in 24 hours. Units can be transported with a standard roll-off truck. The watertight unit has a 1/4-inch steel floor plate and seven-gauge sides, with filter media on the sides, floor and center partition. Other features include a roll-over tarp, quick-

connect fittings, dual inlet ports and multiple drain ports with caps. Fifteen- and 30-cubic-yard sizes are in stock, and

custom sizes are available. 979/245-5656; www.aqua-zyme.com.

MOBILE ROTARY LOBE PUMPMobile rotary lobe pumps from

Boerger are self-priming, valveless, posi-tive-displacement units for rapid deploy-ment for spill situations and digester and lagoon clean up. Twenty pump models in six series are offered with pulsation-free operation, fully reversible rotation, dry-run capabilities and flow rates up to 5,000 gpm. All wear parts can be replaced through the front cover with-out removing pipe or drive systems. Suction and pressure hoses can be installed in minutes. 612/435-7300; www.boerger.com.

COLLECTOR MONITORING SYSTEM

The SmartGuard collector monitoring system for rectangular clari-fiers from Brentwood Industries identifies collector system overloads

that cannot be detected by shear-pin or torque moni-toring devices. The system provides two zones of monitoring via sensors. Embedded magnets in the lower-rear idler sprockets allow the system to iden-tify irregular sprocket motion. Flight misalignment is detected by cam assemblies as each flight passes

over the head shaft. Early detection helps waste-water plants avoid system failures by controlling up to four mechanisms, including longitudinal

collectors, cross-collectors, scum pipes and screw conveyors. 610/374-5109; www.brentwoodindustries.com.

CONTAINER COVER SYSTEM

The LEVEL LODOR container cover system from JDV Equipment Corporation helps reduce operator time and the build-ing footprint, while keeping plant odors and solids exposure minimal and provid-ing efficient leveling of solids. The system has a low power requirement, stainless steel construction, odor control and stan-

only dirty water for blowdown. They are available in sizes up to a 66-inch body in steel or corrosion-resistant metals. They remove large, irregularly shaped solids and contaminants from wastewater and nonpotable water systems and protect down-stream fine filtration equipment. Screens are avail-able down to 75 microns. The strainers are custom fabricated and fit existing strainer locations, avoiding piping rework. Designs are available to handle viscous fluids like biosolids and extremely high solids loading. 518/236-5659; www.acmeprod.com.

ADAPTIVE SCREENING SYSTEM

The Duperon FlexRake utilizes FlexLink technology to flex and pivot around all types of debris — from standard influent to logs, tires and sewer plugs. This capability assures that all debris is removed at the bar screen, without alarms or operator intervention. The Adaptive Technology recognizes the

variability of wastewater influent and provides reliable process protec-tion, regardless of what comes into the channel. 800/383-8479; www.duperon.com.

SELF-CLEANING FINE SCREEN

The CleanFlo Monoscreen self-cleaning fine screen from WesTech Engineering uses a reliable blade and drive sys-tem, creating a progressive step motion that allows screenings to be evenly distributed while minimizing water level surges. The result is a screenings capture rate of 82.5 percent. When matched with the Clean-Wash SWP/CPS dewatering unit, the system maxi-mizes solids capture for almost any headworks operation while minimizing solids for disposal. 801/265-1000; www.westech-inc.com.

Septage Receiving Stations

SEPTAGE ACCEPTANCE PLANTThe Raptor septage acceptance plant

from Lakeside Equipment Corporation manages biosolids unloading and protects downstream equipment. The system offers security access and hauler management and accounting software to help maximize reve-nue generation and produce more energy with minimal maintenance. Properly screened waste can be utilized more successfully in

energy production or processed through the facility. 630/837-5640; www.lakeside-equipment.com.

Biosolids Handling

BIOSOLIDS DATA MANAGEMENT SOFTWAREThe BioSolids Module for Operator10 Wastewater from AllMax Soft-

product focus Biosolids Management/Headworks

(continued)

CleanFlo Monoscreen self-cleaning fine screen from

WesTech Engineering

ACRS automatic scraper-strainers from Acme Engineering Products

Mobile rotary lobe pumps from Boerger

FlexRake from Duperon

Brentwood Industries

BioSolids Module for Operator10 Wastewater from AllMax Software

LEVEL LODOR container cover system from JDV Equipment Corporation

Raptor septage acceptance plant from Lakeside

Equipment Corporation

Roll-off Dewatering Unit from AQUA-Zyme Disposal Systems








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ti � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � �

ware monitors loading rates for land applica-tion of biosolids. It also tracks application locations, methods, amounts and who applies the material. A reporting section allows users to generate limit, application and nutrient reports to maintain proper recordkeeping and stay compliant with reporting requirements. Its use enhances communication between the preparer, applier and landowner. 800/670-1867; www.allmaxsoftware.com.

ROLL-OFF DEWATERING UNIT

The Roll-off Dewatering Unit from AQUA-Zyme Disposal Systems can reduce biosolids volume with reductions in BOD, COD, FOG and

TSS. Solids can be landfill-ready in 24 hours. Units can be transported with a standard roll-off truck. The watertight unit has a 1/4-inch steel floor plate and seven-gauge sides, with filter media on the sides, floor and center partition. Other features include a roll-over tarp, quick-

connect fittings, dual inlet ports and multiple drain ports with caps. Fifteen- and 30-cubic-yard sizes are in stock, and

custom sizes are available. 979/245-5656; www.aqua-zyme.com.

MOBILE ROTARY LOBE PUMPMobile rotary lobe pumps from

Boerger are self-priming, valveless, posi-tive-displacement units for rapid deploy-ment for spill situations and digester and lagoon clean up. Twenty pump models in six series are offered with pulsation-free operation, fully reversible rotation, dry-run capabilities and flow rates up to 5,000 gpm. All wear parts can be replaced through the front cover with-out removing pipe or drive systems. Suction and pressure hoses can be installed in minutes. 612/435-7300; www.boerger.com.

COLLECTOR MONITORING SYSTEM

The SmartGuard collector monitoring system for rectangular clari-fiers from Brentwood Industries identifies collector system overloads

that cannot be detected by shear-pin or torque moni-toring devices. The system provides two zones of monitoring via sensors. Embedded magnets in the lower-rear idler sprockets allow the system to iden-tify irregular sprocket motion. Flight misalignment is detected by cam assemblies as each flight passes

over the head shaft. Early detection helps waste-water plants avoid system failures by controlling up to four mechanisms, including longitudinal

collectors, cross-collectors, scum pipes and screw conveyors. 610/374-5109; www.brentwoodindustries.com.

CONTAINER COVER SYSTEM

The LEVEL LODOR container cover system from JDV Equipment Corporation helps reduce operator time and the build-ing footprint, while keeping plant odors and solids exposure minimal and provid-ing efficient leveling of solids. The system has a low power requirement, stainless steel construction, odor control and stan-

only dirty water for blowdown. They are available in sizes up to a 66-inch body in steel or corrosion-resistant metals. They remove large, irregularly shaped solids and contaminants from wastewater and nonpotable water systems and protect down-stream fine filtration equipment. Screens are avail-able down to 75 microns. The strainers are custom fabricated and fit existing strainer locations, avoiding piping rework. Designs are available to handle viscous fluids like biosolids and extremely high solids loading. 518/236-5659; www.acmeprod.com.

ADAPTIVE SCREENING SYSTEM

The Duperon FlexRake utilizes FlexLink technology to flex and pivot around all types of debris — from standard influent to logs, tires and sewer plugs. This capability assures that all debris is removed at the bar screen, without alarms or operator intervention. The Adaptive Technology recognizes the

variability of wastewater influent and provides reliable process protec-tion, regardless of what comes into the channel. 800/383-8479; www.duperon.com.

SELF-CLEANING FINE SCREEN

The CleanFlo Monoscreen self-cleaning fine screen from WesTech Engineering uses a reliable blade and drive sys-tem, creating a progressive step motion that allows screenings to be evenly distributed while minimizing water level surges. The result is a screenings capture rate of 82.5 percent. When matched with the Clean-Wash SWP/CPS dewatering unit, the system maxi-mizes solids capture for almost any headworks operation while minimizing solids for disposal. 801/265-1000; www.westech-inc.com.

Septage Receiving Stations

SEPTAGE ACCEPTANCE PLANTThe Raptor septage acceptance plant

from Lakeside Equipment Corporation manages biosolids unloading and protects downstream equipment. The system offers security access and hauler management and accounting software to help maximize reve-nue generation and produce more energy with minimal maintenance. Properly screened waste can be utilized more successfully in

energy production or processed through the facility. 630/837-5640; www.lakeside-equipment.com.

Biosolids Handling

BIOSOLIDS DATA MANAGEMENT SOFTWAREThe BioSolids Module for Operator10 Wastewater from AllMax Soft-


(continued)

CleanFlo Monoscreen self-cleaning fine screen from

WesTech Engineering

ACRS automatic scraper-strainers from Acme Engineering Products

Mobile rotary lobe pumps from Boerger

FlexRake from Duperon

Brentwood Industries

BioSolids Module for Operator10 Wastewater from AllMax Software

LEVEL LODOR container cover system from JDV Equipment Corporation

Raptor septage acceptance plant from Lakeside

Equipment Corporation

Roll-off Dewatering Unit from AQUA-Zyme Disposal Systems


ened to 3 to 15 percent. The biosolids are pumped to the thickener, where polymer is injected before the material enters a tank. A vertically mounted mechanical mixer gently agitates for up to one minute to aggregate the fine solids into a tight floc. The conditioned biosolids flow into the distribution headbox and are fed gently into a screen cyl-inder. The floc is retained on the screen surface as the liquid flows rap-idly through the screen. Filtrate is collected and directed to a bottom outlet. Solids are transported by flights along the cylinder and exit through a discharge chute. 800/663-8409; www.ipec.ca.

BIOSOLIDS DRYING SYSTEM

Biosolids drying systems from Kom-line-Sanderson use steam or thermal fluid with heat supplied from the combustion of natural gas, digester gas, landfill gas or fuel oil, or recovered heat from engines or turbines. The dryer’s shaft, hollow pad-dles and trough are all heated. The design

and low speed with few rotating parts reduces maintenance. Indirect drying reduces off-gases, simplifying odor control. The system pro-duces a Class A granular product for agricultural use or an autogenous paste for use as a green fuel. 800/225-5457; www.komline.com.

THERMAL BIOSOLIDS DRYER

The BioCon thermal dryer from Kru-ger USA processes biosolids into a mar-ketable end product. The dual-belt dryer creates an end product dried to at least 90 percent solids that meets Class A require-ments. The product is suitable for most agricultural applications. Particle-sizing equipment can screen the product to meet nutrient marketers’ specific size requirements. The system can be paired with an end product storage system, such as a bagging station or silo system. 919/677-8310; www.krugerusa.com.

ENCLOSED BIOSOLIDS DRYER

The Bioset Process from Schwing Bioset achieves Class A biosolids via the time versus temperature equation and pH adjustment per EPA 503 regula-tions. Operating costs are reduced due to PFRP approval, allowing process operation at 55 degrees C for 40 minutes. From startup to shutdown the pro-cess remains easy to operate and reliable. A com-pletely enclosed system prevents spills and odors. 715/247-3433; www.betterreuse.com.

HEAT EXCHANGER

The Type E concentric tube-in-tube heat exchanger from Walker Process Equipment uses counter-flow circulation of hot water and biosolids, providing high heat transfer with low headloss. End castings are removable for clean-ing without draining the water-side tubes and include water back-flushing connections. High-pressure units are available for use with egg-shaped or large-depth digester tanks. Controls include non-flow restrictive temperature sensors and glass tube or dial thermome-ters to measure inlet and outlet biosolids temperatures. 630/892-7921; www.walker-process.com.

dard safety devices. The fully automated system levels biosolids in roll-off containers to save time and handling of potentially hazardous or infectious material. It protects dried solids from exposure to weather. 973/366-6556; www.jdvequipment.com.

BIOSOLIDS CAKE CONVEYING SYSTEM

The NEMO BF/SF biosolids cake conveying system from NETZSCH Pumps

North America uses positive displacement pumps that convey dewatered biosolids from filter presses or

centrifuges. The customizable rectan-gular hopper and force-feed chamber provide direct entry of the product into the rotor and stator. The coupling

rod incorporates a positioned-feed screw auger extending over the joints that is always positioned opposite the open cavity of the stator. This gives biosolids cake the shortest possible route into the open cavity, improving chamber filling significantly. Its Friction Loss Reduction (FLR) system reduces pressure, cuts operating costs and improves system life. 610/363-8010; www.netzschusa.com.

PROGRESSIVE CAVITY PUMP

Progressive cavity pumps from seepex provide valveless f low control for f low stability, especially where turndown is required. They offer gentle, precise handling with virtually no pulsation and can be made of materials to accommodate all types of fluids. The stator is split axially into two halves, compression-fit together using four retaining segments. Simple access to the rotor and stator for inspec-tion dismantling pipelines reduces service time. 937/864-7150; www.seepex.com.

SOLIDS-HANDLING PUMP

IQ Series pumps from Vogelsang elimi-nate half the parts in a typical rotary lobe pump wet-end, reducing parts cost and labor. They offer an advanced flow-path

design that improves flow and solids handling. An integrated flange design allows a flange to be used in a

90-degree or gooseneck arrangement, keeping the pump flooded to maintain prime and extended dry running. The flange arrangement delivers pulsation-free flow, low shear and high solids handling. 800/984-9400; www.vogelsangusa.com.

Biosolids Heaters/Dryers/Thickeners

ROTARY DRUM BIOSOLIDS THICKENER

The IFT rotary drum biosolids thickener from IPEC Consultants con-sists of a cylindrical drum with progres-sive series of screen elements. The drum rotates on four wheels mounted on a structural housing. The screens remove free liquids. Biosolids contain-ing 0.5 to 3 percent solids can be thick-


Type E concentric heat exchanger from Walker Process Equipment

Progressive cavity pumps from seepex

IQ Series pumps from Vogelsang

BioCon thermal dryer from Kruger USA

IFT rotary drum biosolids thickener from

IPEC Consultants

Biosolids drying systems from Komline-Sanderson

NEMO BF/SF biosolids cake conveying system from

NETZSCH Pumps North America

Bioset Process from Schwing Bioset

CLASSIFIEDADVERTISING

F E B R u A R y

BLOWERS

We BUY used blowers, motors & controls. If you are upgrading your WWTP consider us before scrapping your old equipment. Call 800-605-0099 or email photos & contact de-tails to [email protected] (o04)

DEWatERing

4” Dia-Disk Double Diaphragm Pump: 5hp electric motor. Cost new - $17,000. Com-pletely rebuilt. Variable flow, 0-200gpm, low-stroke - won’t shear polymer. PRICE $7,500. Pictures are available upon request. Please call 910-738-5311. (oBM)

EDUCatiOn

RoyCEU.com: We provide continuing educa-tion courses for water, wastewater and wa-ter distribution system operators. Log onto www.royceu.com and see our approved states and courses. Call 386-574-4307 for details. (oBM)

MiSCELLanEOUS

UV DISINFECTION EQUIPMENT: Attention: Small wastewater treatment plant owners and operators. Possible use with Fish Farms. Portable, or very easy installation.Brand new product. US patent pending. callagher@sbc global.net, www.thefecalfighter.com. (oBM)

PUMPSTwo (2) 4” Thompson Double Diaphragm Pumps: 5hp electric motor, single phase. Cost new - $9,000 each. Will sell both for $5,000 or sell individually for $3,000 each. Pictures are available upon request. Please call 910-738-5311. (oBM)

tRaiLERS- VaCUUM/tankER

4,000-gallon Lely Self-Contained Vac/Press Tanker: Isuzu motor, Fruitland RCF 500 vac-uum pump, Evans tri-axle trailer with alumi-num wheels. Excellent condition - $27,500. Pictures are available upon request. Please call 910-738-5311. (oBM)


ened to 3 to 15 percent. The biosolids are pumped to the thickener, where polymer is injected before the material enters a tank. A vertically mounted mechanical mixer gently agitates for up to one minute to aggregate the fine solids into a tight floc. The conditioned biosolids flow into the distribution headbox and are fed gently into a screen cyl-inder. The floc is retained on the screen surface as the liquid flows rap-idly through the screen. Filtrate is collected and directed to a bottom outlet. Solids are transported by flights along the cylinder and exit through a discharge chute. 800/663-8409; www.ipec.ca.

BIOSOLIDS DRYING SYSTEM

Biosolids drying systems from Kom-line-Sanderson use steam or thermal fluid with heat supplied from the combustion of natural gas, digester gas, landfill gas or fuel oil, or recovered heat from engines or turbines. The dryer’s shaft, hollow pad-dles and trough are all heated. The design

and low speed with few rotating parts reduces maintenance. Indirect drying reduces off-gases, simplifying odor control. The system pro-duces a Class A granular product for agricultural use or an autogenous paste for use as a green fuel. 800/225-5457; www.komline.com.

THERMAL BIOSOLIDS DRYER

The BioCon thermal dryer from Kru-ger USA processes biosolids into a mar-ketable end product. The dual-belt dryer creates an end product dried to at least 90 percent solids that meets Class A require-ments. The product is suitable for most agricultural applications. Particle-sizing equipment can screen the product to meet nutrient marketers’ specific size requirements. The system can be paired with an end product storage system, such as a bagging station or silo system. 919/677-8310; www.krugerusa.com.

ENCLOSED BIOSOLIDS DRYER

The Bioset Process from Schwing Bioset achieves Class A biosolids via the time versus temperature equation and pH adjustment per EPA 503 regula-tions. Operating costs are reduced due to PFRP approval, allowing process operation at 55 degrees C for 40 minutes. From startup to shutdown the pro-cess remains easy to operate and reliable. A com-pletely enclosed system prevents spills and odors. 715/247-3433; www.betterreuse.com.

HEAT EXCHANGER

The Type E concentric tube-in-tube heat exchanger from Walker Process Equipment uses counter-flow circulation of hot water and biosolids, providing high heat transfer with low headloss. End castings are removable for clean-ing without draining the water-side tubes and include water back-flushing connections. High-pressure units are available for use with egg-shaped or large-depth digester tanks. Controls include non-flow restrictive temperature sensors and glass tube or dial thermome-ters to measure inlet and outlet biosolids temperatures. 630/892-7921; www.walker-process.com.

dard safety devices. The fully automated system levels biosolids in roll-off containers to save time and handling of potentially hazardous or infectious material. It protects dried solids from exposure to weather. 973/366-6556; www.jdvequipment.com.

BIOSOLIDS CAKE CONVEYING SYSTEM

The NEMO BF/SF biosolids cake conveying system from NETZSCH Pumps

North America uses positive displacement pumps that convey dewatered biosolids from filter presses or

centrifuges. The customizable rectan-gular hopper and force-feed chamber provide direct entry of the product into the rotor and stator. The coupling

rod incorporates a positioned-feed screw auger extending over the joints that is always positioned opposite the open cavity of the stator. This gives biosolids cake the shortest possible route into the open cavity, improving chamber filling significantly. Its Friction Loss Reduction (FLR) system reduces pressure, cuts operating costs and improves system life. 610/363-8010; www.netzschusa.com.

PROGRESSIVE CAVITY PUMP

Progressive cavity pumps from seepex provide valveless f low control for f low stability, especially where turndown is required. They offer gentle, precise handling with virtually no pulsation and can be made of materials to accommodate all types of fluids. The stator is split axially into two halves, compression-fit together using four retaining segments. Simple access to the rotor and stator for inspec-tion dismantling pipelines reduces service time. 937/864-7150; www.seepex.com.

SOLIDS-HANDLING PUMP

IQ Series pumps from Vogelsang elimi-nate half the parts in a typical rotary lobe pump wet-end, reducing parts cost and labor. They offer an advanced flow-path

design that improves flow and solids handling. An integrated flange design allows a flange to be used in a

90-degree or gooseneck arrangement, keeping the pump flooded to maintain prime and extended dry running. The flange arrangement delivers pulsation-free flow, low shear and high solids handling. 800/984-9400; www.vogelsangusa.com.

Biosolids Heaters/Dryers/Thickeners

ROTARY DRUM BIOSOLIDS THICKENER

The IFT rotary drum biosolids thickener from IPEC Consultants con-sists of a cylindrical drum with progres-sive series of screen elements. The drum rotates on four wheels mounted on a structural housing. The screens remove free liquids. Biosolids contain-ing 0.5 to 3 percent solids can be thick-


Type E concentric heat exchanger from Walker Process Equipment

Progressive cavity pumps from seepex

IQ Series pumps from Vogelsang

BioCon thermal dryer from Kruger USA

IFT rotary drum biosolids thickener from

IPEC Consultants

Biosolids drying systems from Komline-Sanderson

NEMO BF/SF biosolids cake conveying system from

NETZSCH Pumps North America

Bioset Process from Schwing Bioset

CLASSIFIEDADVERTISING

F E B R u A R y

BLOWERS

We BUY used blowers, motors & controls. If you are upgrading your WWTP consider us before scrapping your old equipment. Call 800-605-0099 or email photos & contact de-tails to [email protected] (o04)

DEWatERing

4” Dia-Disk Double Diaphragm Pump: 5hp electric motor. Cost new - $17,000. Com-pletely rebuilt. Variable flow, 0-200gpm, low-stroke - won’t shear polymer. PRICE $7,500. Pictures are available upon request. Please call 910-738-5311. (oBM)

EDUCatiOn

RoyCEU.com: We provide continuing educa-tion courses for water, wastewater and wa-ter distribution system operators. Log onto www.royceu.com and see our approved states and courses. Call 386-574-4307 for details. (oBM)

MiSCELLanEOUS

UV DISINFECTION EQUIPMENT: Attention: Small wastewater treatment plant owners and operators. Possible use with Fish Farms. Portable, or very easy installation.Brand new product. US patent pending. callagher@sbc global.net, www.thefecalfighter.com. (oBM)

PUMPSTwo (2) 4” Thompson Double Diaphragm Pumps: 5hp electric motor, single phase. Cost new - $9,000 each. Will sell both for $5,000 or sell individually for $3,000 each. Pictures are available upon request. Please call 910-738-5311. (oBM)

tRaiLERS- VaCUUM/tankER

4,000-gallon Lely Self-Contained Vac/Press Tanker: Isuzu motor, Fruitland RCF 500 vac-uum pump, Evans tri-axle trailer with alumi-num wheels. Excellent condition - $27,500. Pictures are available upon request. Please call 910-738-5311. (oBM)

American Made

Visit us at Booth #3501

2014

Custom Dewatering/Composting Solutions.

· Gravity Belt Thickeners · Belt Presses · Rotary Drum Concentrators · Equipment Restoration · Screw Presses · On-Site Service & Mobile Demos· Complete Compost Facility Design

Agitated and Aerated In-vessel type Composting System (ICS)

Floor Level 3.0 m model 3DP No platforms or stairs required!

Compact 0.9 m Model DDP Belt Press Great for small plants

Groton NY WWTP Model 3012 DSP Screw Press

Sales: 518-527-5417 Factory: 518-695-6851 Fax: 518-695-5417 Email: [email protected] www.bdpindustries.com

BDP represented by:

MSD Environmental Dave Deaton224 Linden DriveCenterville, OH 45459Bus: (937) 313-9314Mobile: (937) 313-9314Bus Fax: (937) 438-5646E-mail: [email protected]


RESULT

RESULT

RESULT

Cake bin systems provide material handling for thermal hydrolysis

ProblemThe DC Water Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant in

Washington, D.C., needed a supplier to provide the material-handling com-ponent for the first-ever CAMBI thermal hydrolysis process system in the U.S.

SolutionJim Myers & Sons worked with PC Construction and the CDM engi-

neering firm to provide four large T-316 stainless steel cake bin sys-tems. Each receives dewatered biosolids from three centrifuges through chutes with electric-actuated diverter gates. Each bin is 28 feet long, 35 feet tall and 18 feet wide, and tapers to 9 feet wide at the live bottom pan. Each live bottom pan houses four 20-inch-diameter shafted T-316 stainless steel screws. Each bin was provided in four pieces with stiffeners, assembled completely and provided separately. Other features include local con-trol stations, electric-actu-ated slide gates, load cells, level sensors, and 10 chutes with sampling ports and spray-water nozzles.

The systems offer a separate control point to adjust the thermal hydrolysis process throughput independently from upstream processes. They provide capacity to store sufficient biosolids to be able to maintain operation of the process for about 12 hours at the design average throughput rate. 704/554-8397; www.myersequipment.com.

Screw press replaces dewatering system destroyed in fire

ProblemTim Frank Septic Tank Cleaning Co. in northern Ohio began a dewater-

ing operation in 1994, but a fire in 2007 destroyed the company’s dewatering building and press.

SolutionHaving hosted a National Association

of Wastewater Technicians waste treat-ment symposium before the fire, Tim and Tom Frank saw various dewatering tech-nologies in operation. They installed a screw press from FKC Co. in the new dewatering facility.

The screw press dewaters a mixture of septage and biosolids from small commercial treatment plants to about 30 percent solids. The solids are land-filled or land-applied. Filtrate from the screw press is treated in lagoons and manmade wetlands before being spray-irrigated onto farmland growing giant miscanthus, which will be used as a renewable fuel. 360/452-9472; www.fkcscrewpress.com.

Digester system produces biogas for large poultry processing plant

ProblemMironovsky Hleboproduct in the Ukraine is one of Europe’s largest sus-

tainable poultry product producers. The company sought to install a digester to use chicken manure, wastewater treatment plant biosolids, sorghum and wastewater to produce biogas.

SolutionNijhuis Water Technology installed digester tanks 30 meters

in diameter, mixed and heated to allow anaerobic digestion. A two-step sys-tem increases biogas production. The digestate is separated in a solid and liquid fertilizer. The biogas is used to heat the digesters during the year, to heat build-ings and stables in win-ter and to produce electricity year-round.

The system treats more than 700 tons of substrates each day, generating up to 5 MW. Exhaust heat feeds boilers for the slaughter-house. The heat is also used in the processing plant and in winter to heat the chicken houses. The power is used at the slaughterhouse year-round, and excess power is sold to the commercial grid. 312/300-4101; www.nijhuis-water.com.

RESULT

RESULT

RESULT RESULT

Mobile dewatering truck saves on handling, disposal costs

ProblemAntigonish County in Nova Scotia faced escalating costs for handling

septage and wastewater treatment plant biosolids. SolutionABCO Industries Limited offered its Mobile Dewatering Truck

(MDT), essentially a vacuum truck that dewaters biosolids. In most cases, about 85 percent of biosolids volume is returned as a clear filtrate to the source. The dewatered solids are mixed with wood chips and com-posted. Once stabilized, the compost is applied as landfill capping material.

The county achieved cost savings and no longer needed its lagoon system. The results showed savings in mileage and fuel consumption, vehicle wear, travel time and volume transferred. “The truck has performed as we had hoped for and has allowed us to greatly reduce our costs,” says Darrell Myers, an operator for Antigonish County. 866/634-8821; www.abco.ca.

Ferric chloride helps control phosphorus, reduce polymer demand

ProblemThe Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant in Springfield, Mo., had high

polymer demand, using 100 pounds per dry ton of solids. The plant also had issues with controlling effluent phosphorus and struvite in the centrate lines. Operators needed to lower overall operations and maintenance costs while addressing the phosphorus issue.

Solution After lab and full-scale testing, Kemira installed a 5,000-gallon

tank for ferric chloride with containment and spill safety protocol. The com-pany installed and calibrated two pumps and trained the staff to operate the equipment safely, calibrate the equipment and make process calculations required to monitor the trial performance. Kemira also designed and installed a system that allows operators to adjust the ferric chloride/biosolids ratio while the auto-mated valve fills the holding tank. This includes a specially designed static mixer to blend the ferric chloride with the incoming biosolids.

Polymer dosing dropped 33 percent, cake solids content increased 1.5 percent, alum dos-ing costing $170,000 per year was eliminated, phosphorus removal increased 93 percent and the total process cost decreased by 9.15 percent for annual total savings of $311,165. 800/533-5990; www.kemira.com

Double-tube heat exchangers rectify blockages

ProblemThe Severn Trent Water facility in Leicestershire, United Kingdom, faced

spiral heat exchanger blockages, resulting in low efficiency and high mainte-nance costs. The problem led to replacement of the heat exchangers in the digesters. Replacement units had to fit the space available, and both sides had to produce pressures to suit existing equipment. The design also needed to have minimal impact on existing site pip-ing. The exchangers had to resist clogging with raggy biosolids and meet thermal requirements efficiently, reliably and with minimal maintenance.

SolutionHRS Heat Exchangers recom-

mended DTI Series industrial double- tube heat exchangers, a tube-in-tube design with tubes sized to allow large parti-cles and raggy biosolids to pass through. The internal tube is corrugated, creating turbu-lence that improves heat transfer and reduces the risk of fouling.

The heat exchangers ended the blocking problems and increased digester efficiency. 623/915-4328; www.hrs-heatexchangers.com.

Screw press helps utility meet biosolids goal

ProblemFaced with aging infrastructure and equipment, Daphne (Ala.) Utilities

needed technology to help fulfill the goal of producing Class A Biosolids. A crucial element was a reliable dewatering process that would meet perfor-mance goals and be harmonious with the neighborhood.

SolutionThe utility ultimately chose the RoS3Q screw press from Huber

Technology. The press can achieve up to 27 per-cent cake solids, has a low power requirement with a 5 hp motor, has an auto-matic cleaning function and leaves no watery mess around the unit.

“Before choosing the Huber screw press, we examined several other technologies,” says Jim Caudle, manager of the Daphne Utilities Water Reclamation Facility. “After using the press for more than two years, we have found it to be efficient and reliable. It’s a selection we’d make again.” 704/949-1010; www.huber-technology.com.

case studies BIOSOLIDS MANAGEMENT/HEADWORKS

By Craig Mandli


grades are welcome, the exhibits — some of which combine educa-tion with video gaming — target grades 4 through 8.

FUTURE STEWARDS

Careers have a place in the exhibits, too. Job descriptions and life-size cut-out photos of a treatment plant operator, wastewater plant manager, engineer, lab technician, inspector and plumber cre-ate interest; kids can have their pictures taken next to the photos.

One goal is to give visitors a greater understanding of all the city does to protect public health and the environment, and of the need to increase recycled water production to 59,000 acre-feet per year by 2035. “Our visitors have no idea what happens to their wastewater or the challenges the city faces,” Mayuyu says. “They’re surprised that most of our water comes from hundreds of miles away, and only one percent comes from recycled water.

“We’ve created an invaluable opportunity to educate about the importance of sustainable water and solid resources management. These kids are users of water but can also learn to be water conservers. We are preparing them to be our future environmental stewards.”

The center’s aim is to help visitors appreciate the challenges of waste-water treatment and the benefits it brings to the city.

“We’ve created an

invaluable opportunity

to educate about

the importance of

sustainable water

and solid resources

management. These

kids are users of water

but can also learn to

be water conservers.

We are preparing

them to be our future

environmental stewards.”RONALD MAYUYU

The old administration building at the Hyperion Treatment Plant in southwest Los Angeles sat empty for 10 years after a new facility was built in 1998.

Through collaboration between the Public Works Department and the mayor’s office, the building became an environmental educa-tion center that achieved LEED Gold certification. The $11.5 million, 20,000-square-foot Los Angeles Environmental Learning Center was dedicated last September.

The Hyperion Plant, one of four treatment and water reclamation plants serving more than four million people, is the largest of its kind west of the Mississippi and the sixth largest in the world. Almost 400 employees manage full secondary treatment, biosolids handling and biogas generation. Green practices are important to the region, beset with years of drought.

TEACHING SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainable practices and learning experiences were built through-out the learning center. Besides illustrating how wastewater is cleaned and recycled, the center preaches the virtues of watershed

protection and sustainability, including the tenets of reduce, reuse, recycle and recover.

Green building features demonstrate sustainable principles while reducing energy use. A green roof is irrigated with recycled water, skylights provide natural light, photovoltaic panels generate electricity and water is solar heated. The entrance walkway is made of permeable pavers, and drought-tolerant landscaping includes a stream and terraced wetland fed with recycled water and stocked with mosquito fish. An observation deck overlooks the treatment processes.

Planning the educational content was another collaborative effort. “We gathered input from subject matter experts and the entire oper-ations staff, from managers, engineers, operations and maintenance staff to public affairs,” say Ronald Mayuyu, project engineer for the Bureau of Sanitation. “Then we brought in a firm with experience around the world designing exhibits that successfully engage and connect with young kids.”

An 87-seat auditorium and learning lab classroom accommodate lectures and hands-on learning. Exhibits and interactive displays teach sustainable resource management. They include exhibits on clean water and watershed protection and a gallery shows how Los Angeles is on the “Road to Zero Waste.” Although all

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TPO welcomes news about your public education and community outreach efforts for future articles in the Hearts and Minds column. Send your ideas to editor@tpo mag.com or call 715/277-4094.

The Los Angeles Environmental Learning Center offers a variety of fun educational exhibits.

Learning PlaceA VACANT ADMINISTRATION BUILDING BECOMES A WORLD-CLASS ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CENTER WITH LEED CERTIFICATION

By Linda J. Edmondson

The learning center building and grounds incorporate many green features.


1. XYLEM CLOSED-VESSEL UV SYSTEM The WEDECO LBXe 850 and 1500 closed-vessel ultraviolet disinfec-

tion systems from Xylem are optimized for large-scale applications and validated according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s UV Disinfection Guidance Manual (USEPA’s UVDGM 2006). They also have been validated according to the National Water Research Institute (NWRI) 2012 guidelines by independent Carollo Engineers. The UV systems are capable of handling peak flow rates of 8.5 mgd per reactor. Both models feature an OptiCone flow diverter that channels the flow evenly across the lamps to maximize disinfection. 704/409-9700; www.xyleminc.com.

2. OPTO 22 HIGH-FREQUENCY SNAP I/O MODULES High-frequency analog SNAP I/O modules with pulse-width modula-

tion and time-proportional output from Opto 22 are designed for engi-neers and technicians working with high-speed machinery, equipment test beds and applications that monitor high-frequency analog signals. The SNAP-AIRATE-HFi input module connects to TTL, CMOS and open-collector outputs and is typically used for high-speed (up to 500 kHz) pulse scanning. The SNAP-AOS-29-HFi sends pulse-width modulated outputs to high-frequency transducers and can be used with test bed applications that simulate tachometer outputs. 800/321-6786; www.opto22.com.

3. YASKAWA MEDIUM VOLTAGE AV DRIVE The MV1000 medium voltage AC drive from the Drives and Motion

Division of Yaskawa America is designed for energy savings and improved process control. Features include modular design, high efficiency and low harmonics. Smart Harmonics technology reduces input total har-

monic distortion (THD) to less than 2.5 percent without filters, exceed-ing IEEE 519-1992 requirements by nearly 50 percent. The MV1000 uses two 5-voltage step bridges per phase to generate 17 level line-to-line volt-age output to the motor. Several motor control modes are available for a range of applications. 800/927-5292; www.yaskawa.com.

4. KOCH MEMBRANE SYSTEMS HOLLOW

FIBER ULTRAFILTRATION The MegaPure hollow fiber ultrafiltration product line from Koch

Membrane Systems is designed for high-solids water and wastewater applications. Features include an advanced cartridge design for optimal solids management and reinforced hollow fiber for added reliability. It has an average continuous solids tolerance of up to 250 mg/L for high sol-ids applications such as surface water treatment, high TOC water treat-ment, RO pretreatment and tertiary wastewater treatment. In many applications, the filtration system eliminates the need for clarifier pre-treatment. 888/677-5624; www.kochmembrane.com.

5. HACH FL900AV FLOW LOGGER The FL900AV flow logger from Hach, together with the AV9000 ana-

lyzer, dampens EMF and RFI noise for smoother, more accurate mea-surements. Velocity measurements can account for water temperature swings and salinity concentrations. Advanced diagnostics verify that the sensor is working properly. 800/368-2723; www.hachflow.com.

6. KRUGER REAL-TIME CONTAMINANT

TRACKING SYSTEM OdoWatch 4 from Kruger, in conjunction with Odotech, is a Web-based

software that identifies where odor is traveling and its intensity level. The

product news

1

23

4

5

68

9

10

7

tracking system monitors odor, contaminants (H2S, ammonia), weather conditions and user-specified alert points over time. Data is processed using the CALPUFF dispersion model. A real-time active plume is gener-ated and overlaid on a map of the area to track the odor’s direction of travel. Data is stored and can be utilized in real time and for historical reporting. 919/677-8310; www.krugerusa.com.

7. WALCHEM W100W CONTROLLER The W100W controller from Walchem has three control outputs,

large icon-based display and multiple language support. Other features include universal sensor input, while the cooling tower/boiler model has an optional analog (4-20 mA) output for recording, data logging or connection to energy management systems. The conductivity, pH/ORP and disinfection W100W has three models that can be used with amplified electrodes, nonamplified electrodes with a BNC connector or nonamplified electrodes without a connector. 508/429-1110; www.walchem.com.

8. HEMCO ISLAND CANOPY HOOD Island canopy hoods from HEMCO collect and exhaust corrosive

vapors, heat, steam and odors when mounted over areas with water baths, hot plates or portable equipment. Hoods are made of one-piece composite resin and can be wall-mounted or suspended from the ceiling.

Optional side panels prevent cross drafts. 800/779-4362; www.hemco corp.com.

9. PUMPS 2000 3-INCH BALL VALVE PUMP The 3-inch high-volume ball valve pump from Pumps 2000 America

has a flow rate of 417 gpm, self-cleaning valve, long-life diaphragm and can handle up to 1.3-inch solids. 412/963-9200; www.pumps2000 america.com.

10. CONVEYOR COMPONENTS TILT LEVEL CONTROLS Tilt level controls from Conveyor Components Co. are designed for

dry bulk material level indication and control applications. The UL listed control units are enclosed in a cast aluminum housing with LED indica-tor lights to alert the operator of either the presence or absence of mate-rial. Equipped with a surface mount PC board, the unit allows for a maximum of 5,000 feet of cable between the control unit and probe. Control units are available in three models: CT-105 (NEMA Type 4, 4X), CT-106 (NEMA Type 9 Class II, Groups E, F and G) and CT-107 (NEMA Type 7 Class I, Groups C and D; NEMA Type 9 Class II, Groups E, F and G). 800/233-3233; www.conveyorcomponents.com.

product spotlight

The THK thickening centrifuge from Centrisys is designed to thicken waste-activated sludge with little or no polymer. The system pro-duces up to 8 percent cake solids running at flow rates of up to 1,000 gpm. Applications include secondary sludge, primary sludge, oxidation ditch sludge, digested sludge and MBR sludge.

“Depending on the sludge, the characteristics and the demand of the plant, we have the option to run no polymer, or if there’s a scenario where a plant doesn’t want to run three machines or one is down for maintenance, we eliminate the third redundancy by injecting a low dos-age of polymer and diverting full flow through a single machine,” says Andre Adams, chief engineer in research and development of the THK Thickening System. “We can expand the capacity of one machine 150 to 200 percent using 1 to 2 pounds of polymer.”

The centrifuge is available in three models. The 18-inch model is designed to process up to 200 gpm, the 21-inch can process up to 400 gpm and the 26-inch can process up to 1,000 gpm (650 gpm without poly-mer), depending on the sludge and characteristics. The system occupies a footprint that’s up to 90 percent smaller than traditional technologies. One THK 18-3 thickening centrifuge replaces two DAF systems (5,000 square feet).

“While we have processed that amount in the past, we’re now able to do it with smaller machines, less power consumption and reduced poly-mer costs,” Adams says.

Suitable for new plant construction and retrofits, the thickening centrifuge also eliminates odors and provides added flexibility over other technologies.

“If you’re in a plant where they don’t like the smell, and that’s a big fac-

tor, because unless you get a fully enclosed grav-ity belt thickener it’s open to the atmosphere. It’s smelly, and some people don’t like that,” says Bob Harvin, technical direc-tor for Centrisys. The air-tight centrifuge system eliminates odors and aerosols, reducing operator exposure to process liquids and vapors.

“The centrifuge also offers a much wider range of controllable cake solids,” he says. “We can do anywhere from 3 to 10 percent on the slud-ges, which really depends on flow rate. You’re not going to get the driest cake, the highest capacity and the best recovery at the same time. Every-thing’s a trade-off. What this enables you to do is bend and change as you go forward. If you’re going to the new energy initiatives, you probably want to go to different cake solids.”

Easy to operate, the thickening centrifuge requires minimal operator attention. Units weigh from 5,000 to 30,000 pounds and consume 0.11 kW per gallon per minute (thickening sludge at 200 gpm requires a 40 hp motor). 877/339-5496; www.centrisys.us.

Polymer-saving THK thickening centrifugeBy Ed Wodalski

THK thickening centrifuge from Centrisys

(Continued on page 53)


1. XYLEM CLOSED-VESSEL UV SYSTEM The WEDECO LBXe 850 and 1500 closed-vessel ultraviolet disinfec-

tion systems from Xylem are optimized for large-scale applications and validated according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s UV Disinfection Guidance Manual (USEPA’s UVDGM 2006). They also have been validated according to the National Water Research Institute (NWRI) 2012 guidelines by independent Carollo Engineers. The UV systems are capable of handling peak flow rates of 8.5 mgd per reactor. Both models feature an OptiCone flow diverter that channels the flow evenly across the lamps to maximize disinfection. 704/409-9700; www.xyleminc.com.

2. OPTO 22 HIGH-FREQUENCY SNAP I/O MODULES High-frequency analog SNAP I/O modules with pulse-width modula-

tion and time-proportional output from Opto 22 are designed for engi-neers and technicians working with high-speed machinery, equipment test beds and applications that monitor high-frequency analog signals. The SNAP-AIRATE-HFi input module connects to TTL, CMOS and open-collector outputs and is typically used for high-speed (up to 500 kHz) pulse scanning. The SNAP-AOS-29-HFi sends pulse-width modulated outputs to high-frequency transducers and can be used with test bed applications that simulate tachometer outputs. 800/321-6786; www.opto22.com.

3. YASKAWA MEDIUM VOLTAGE AV DRIVE The MV1000 medium voltage AC drive from the Drives and Motion

Division of Yaskawa America is designed for energy savings and improved process control. Features include modular design, high efficiency and low harmonics. Smart Harmonics technology reduces input total har-

monic distortion (THD) to less than 2.5 percent without filters, exceed-ing IEEE 519-1992 requirements by nearly 50 percent. The MV1000 uses two 5-voltage step bridges per phase to generate 17 level line-to-line volt-age output to the motor. Several motor control modes are available for a range of applications. 800/927-5292; www.yaskawa.com.

4. KOCH MEMBRANE SYSTEMS HOLLOW

FIBER ULTRAFILTRATION The MegaPure hollow fiber ultrafiltration product line from Koch

Membrane Systems is designed for high-solids water and wastewater applications. Features include an advanced cartridge design for optimal solids management and reinforced hollow fiber for added reliability. It has an average continuous solids tolerance of up to 250 mg/L for high sol-ids applications such as surface water treatment, high TOC water treat-ment, RO pretreatment and tertiary wastewater treatment. In many applications, the filtration system eliminates the need for clarifier pre-treatment. 888/677-5624; www.kochmembrane.com.

5. HACH FL900AV FLOW LOGGER The FL900AV flow logger from Hach, together with the AV9000 ana-

lyzer, dampens EMF and RFI noise for smoother, more accurate mea-surements. Velocity measurements can account for water temperature swings and salinity concentrations. Advanced diagnostics verify that the sensor is working properly. 800/368-2723; www.hachflow.com.

6. KRUGER REAL-TIME CONTAMINANT

TRACKING SYSTEM OdoWatch 4 from Kruger, in conjunction with Odotech, is a Web-based

software that identifies where odor is traveling and its intensity level. The

product news

1

23

4

5

68

9

10

7

tracking system monitors odor, contaminants (H2S, ammonia), weather conditions and user-specified alert points over time. Data is processed using the CALPUFF dispersion model. A real-time active plume is gener-ated and overlaid on a map of the area to track the odor’s direction of travel. Data is stored and can be utilized in real time and for historical reporting. 919/677-8310; www.krugerusa.com.

7. WALCHEM W100W CONTROLLER The W100W controller from Walchem has three control outputs,

large icon-based display and multiple language support. Other features include universal sensor input, while the cooling tower/boiler model has an optional analog (4-20 mA) output for recording, data logging or connection to energy management systems. The conductivity, pH/ORP and disinfection W100W has three models that can be used with amplified electrodes, nonamplified electrodes with a BNC connector or nonamplified electrodes without a connector. 508/429-1110; www.walchem.com.

8. HEMCO ISLAND CANOPY HOOD Island canopy hoods from HEMCO collect and exhaust corrosive

vapors, heat, steam and odors when mounted over areas with water baths, hot plates or portable equipment. Hoods are made of one-piece composite resin and can be wall-mounted or suspended from the ceiling.

Optional side panels prevent cross drafts. 800/779-4362; www.hemco corp.com.

9. PUMPS 2000 3-INCH BALL VALVE PUMP The 3-inch high-volume ball valve pump from Pumps 2000 America

has a flow rate of 417 gpm, self-cleaning valve, long-life diaphragm and can handle up to 1.3-inch solids. 412/963-9200; www.pumps2000 america.com.

10. CONVEYOR COMPONENTS TILT LEVEL CONTROLS Tilt level controls from Conveyor Components Co. are designed for

dry bulk material level indication and control applications. The UL listed control units are enclosed in a cast aluminum housing with LED indica-tor lights to alert the operator of either the presence or absence of mate-rial. Equipped with a surface mount PC board, the unit allows for a maximum of 5,000 feet of cable between the control unit and probe. Control units are available in three models: CT-105 (NEMA Type 4, 4X), CT-106 (NEMA Type 9 Class II, Groups E, F and G) and CT-107 (NEMA Type 7 Class I, Groups C and D; NEMA Type 9 Class II, Groups E, F and G). 800/233-3233; www.conveyorcomponents.com.

product spotlight

The THK thickening centrifuge from Centrisys is designed to thicken waste-activated sludge with little or no polymer. The system pro-duces up to 8 percent cake solids running at flow rates of up to 1,000 gpm. Applications include secondary sludge, primary sludge, oxidation ditch sludge, digested sludge and MBR sludge.

“Depending on the sludge, the characteristics and the demand of the plant, we have the option to run no polymer, or if there’s a scenario where a plant doesn’t want to run three machines or one is down for maintenance, we eliminate the third redundancy by injecting a low dos-age of polymer and diverting full flow through a single machine,” says Andre Adams, chief engineer in research and development of the THK Thickening System. “We can expand the capacity of one machine 150 to 200 percent using 1 to 2 pounds of polymer.”

The centrifuge is available in three models. The 18-inch model is designed to process up to 200 gpm, the 21-inch can process up to 400 gpm and the 26-inch can process up to 1,000 gpm (650 gpm without poly-mer), depending on the sludge and characteristics. The system occupies a footprint that’s up to 90 percent smaller than traditional technologies. One THK 18-3 thickening centrifuge replaces two DAF systems (5,000 square feet).

“While we have processed that amount in the past, we’re now able to do it with smaller machines, less power consumption and reduced poly-mer costs,” Adams says.

Suitable for new plant construction and retrofits, the thickening centrifuge also eliminates odors and provides added flexibility over other technologies.

“If you’re in a plant where they don’t like the smell, and that’s a big fac-

tor, because unless you get a fully enclosed grav-ity belt thickener it’s open to the atmosphere. It’s smelly, and some people don’t like that,” says Bob Harvin, technical direc-tor for Centrisys. The air-tight centrifuge system eliminates odors and aerosols, reducing operator exposure to process liquids and vapors.

“The centrifuge also offers a much wider range of controllable cake solids,” he says. “We can do anywhere from 3 to 10 percent on the slud-ges, which really depends on flow rate. You’re not going to get the driest cake, the highest capacity and the best recovery at the same time. Every-thing’s a trade-off. What this enables you to do is bend and change as you go forward. If you’re going to the new energy initiatives, you probably want to go to different cake solids.”

Easy to operate, the thickening centrifuge requires minimal operator attention. Units weigh from 5,000 to 30,000 pounds and consume 0.11 kW per gallon per minute (thickening sludge at 200 gpm requires a 40 hp motor). 877/339-5496; www.centrisys.us.

Polymer-saving THK thickening centrifugeBy Ed Wodalski

THK thickening centrifuge from Centrisys



people/awardsThe Attleboro Sewage Plant received a Best in Class Award from the

Massachusetts Water Pollution Control Association. The Fisherman Bay Sewer District received the Wastewater Treat-

ment Plant Outstanding Performance Award from the Washington State Department of Ecology.

The Franklin Township Sewer Authority in Greene County received

the Wastewater System of the Year Award from the Pennyslvania Rural Water Association.

The Fort Morgan Wastewater Treatment Plant received a Safety

Award from the Rocky Mountain Water Environment Association. The City of Aledo Wastewater Treatment Plant received a Municipal

Excellence Award in Public Works (cities with population less than 25,000) from the Texas Municipal League.

The City of Greeley Water Pollution Control Facility received the

Partner of the Year Award from the Colorado Industrial Energy Challenge, and the Bronze Award for its efforts to reduce energy use from the Colorado Environmental Leadership Program.

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies presented the Metro-

politan St. Louis Sewer District with three Platinum Peak Performance

Awards for the Missouri River, Fenton and Lower Meramec wastewater treat-ment plants.

The staff at Brunswick (Maine) Sewer District’s Harry G. Shulman

Water Pollution Control Facility received the Richard B. Goodenow Award from the Maine Wastewater Control Association in recognition of pro-ducing quality effluent.

Thomas Mason, treatment plant operator at the Brunswick (Maine)

Sewer District’s Harry G. Shulman Water Pollution Control Facility, gradu-ated from the Joint Environmental Training Coordinating Committee (JETCC) Management Candidate School, a course designed to prepare the next generation of water and wastewater plant managers.

TPO welcomes your contribution to this listing. To recognize members

of your team, please send notices of new hires, promotions, service milestones, certifications or achievements to [email protected].

education

AlabamaThe Alabama Water Environment Association has a Collection System

Operators Seminar on March 25 in Huntsville. Visit www.awea-al.com.

TPO invites your national, state or local association to post notices and news items in this column. Send contributions to [email protected].

worth noting

Feb. 4-5Michigan Water Environment Association-Michi-gan AWWA Joint Expo, Lansing Center. Visit www.mi-wea.org. Feb. 4-6New York Water Environment Association Annual Conference and Exhibition, New York Marriott Marquis. Visit www.nywea.org. Feb. 24-26California Water Environment Association P3S Annual Conference, Ontario. Call 510/382-7800 ext. 107, or visit www.cwea.org. Feb. 25-28Water Environment Federation 2014 Utility Management Conference. Call 703/684-2441 or visit www.wef.org. March 9-21Water Environment Federation 2014 Water and Wastewater Leadership Center, Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Visit www.wef.org. March 11-14Water Environment Federation Collection Systems 2014: Collection on the Chesapeake, Baltimore (Md.) Convention Center. Call 703/684-2441 or visit www.wef.org. March 18Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Spring Biosolids Symposium, Stevens Point. Visit www.dnr.wi.gov. March 29-April 2Missouri Water Environment Association/American Water Works Association Joint Annual Conference, Osage Beach. Visit www.mwea.org. April 6-9Alabama Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Orange Beach. Call 205/349-0067 or visit www.awea-al.com. April 6-10Florida Water Resources Conference, Coronado Springs Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Event is a joint conference of the Florida Section of the American Water Works Association, the Florida Water Environment Association and the Florida Water and Pollution Control Operators Associa-tion. Visit www.fwea.org. April 14-16Illinois Association of Water Pollution Control Operators Annual Conference, Crowne Plaza, Springfield. Visit www.iawpco.org. April 16-17Nebraska Water Environment Association Great Plains Conference, Embassy Suites, LaViasta. Visit www.ne-wea.org. April 22-24Nevada Water Environment Association Annual

Conference, location to be announced. Visit www.nvwea.org. April 22-24Alaska Water Wastewater Management Associa-tion Annual Conference, Centennial Hall, Juneau. Visit www.awwma.org. April 27-30Arkansas Water Works and Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Hot Springs. Visit www.awwwea.org. April 29-May 2California Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Santa Clara Convention Center. Call 510/382-7800 ext. 115, or visit www.cwea.org. May 3-7British Columbia Water & Waste Association Annual Conference and Trade Show, Whistler. Visit www.bcwwa.org. May 12-16New Jersey Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Bally’s Atlantic City. Visit www.njwea.org. May 18-21Water Environment Federation Residuals and Biosolids 2014: Sustainability Made Simple/Facilitating Resource Recovery, Austin (Texas) Convention Center. Call 703/684-2441 or visit www.wef.org.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS


11. AMETEK POINT LEVEL SWITCH The Z-tron IV point level switch from AMETEK Drexelbrook features

an all-electronic design. Cote-Shield circuitry enables the switch to ignore coatings and buildup on the sensing element. Dust or tunneling won’t produce a false signal. The switch only reacts to actual high- or low-level conditions. The one-piece design allows for easy installation through a single 3/4-inch vessel opening. 800/553-9092; www.drexel brook.com.

12. BADGER METER TURBINE FLOWMETERS Vision Series turbine flowmeters from Badger Meter comply with the

lead-free provisions of the United States Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and are bisphenol A (BPA) free. The meters are designed for flow mea-surement of low-viscosity and nonaggressive liquids. 800/876-3837; www.badgermeter.com.

13. ROCKWELL AUTOMATION POWERFLEX 523

AC DRIVES The Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 520 Series of compact AC drives from

Rockwell Automation are designed for easy configuration. Files can be uploaded or downloaded to the drive using a standard USB connection. The drive also can be programmed through built-in human interface modules that display data on the LCD screen with scrolling QuickView text and detailed explanations of parameters and codes. 414/382-2000; www.rockwellautomation.com/industries/water.

14. RAIN FOR RENT RITEFLO APP RiteFlo, a free app from Rain for Rent, features a suite of hydraulic

estimation tools designed for water and wastewater professionals. The app includes a gravity flow logger and TDH calculator. It can be downloaded from the Apple App Store. 800/742-7246; www.rainforrent.com.

product news

11

12

13

14

(Continued from page 51)


people/awardsThe Attleboro Sewage Plant received a Best in Class Award from the

Massachusetts Water Pollution Control Association. The Fisherman Bay Sewer District received the Wastewater Treat-

ment Plant Outstanding Performance Award from the Washington State Department of Ecology.

The Franklin Township Sewer Authority in Greene County received

the Wastewater System of the Year Award from the Pennyslvania Rural Water Association.

The Fort Morgan Wastewater Treatment Plant received a Safety

Award from the Rocky Mountain Water Environment Association. The City of Aledo Wastewater Treatment Plant received a Municipal

Excellence Award in Public Works (cities with population less than 25,000) from the Texas Municipal League.

The City of Greeley Water Pollution Control Facility received the

Partner of the Year Award from the Colorado Industrial Energy Challenge, and the Bronze Award for its efforts to reduce energy use from the Colorado Environmental Leadership Program.

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies presented the Metro-

politan St. Louis Sewer District with three Platinum Peak Performance

Awards for the Missouri River, Fenton and Lower Meramec wastewater treat-ment plants.

The staff at Brunswick (Maine) Sewer District’s Harry G. Shulman

Water Pollution Control Facility received the Richard B. Goodenow Award from the Maine Wastewater Control Association in recognition of pro-ducing quality effluent.

Thomas Mason, treatment plant operator at the Brunswick (Maine)

Sewer District’s Harry G. Shulman Water Pollution Control Facility, gradu-ated from the Joint Environmental Training Coordinating Committee (JETCC) Management Candidate School, a course designed to prepare the next generation of water and wastewater plant managers.

TPO welcomes your contribution to this listing. To recognize members

of your team, please send notices of new hires, promotions, service milestones, certifications or achievements to [email protected].

education

AlabamaThe Alabama Water Environment Association has a Collection System

Operators Seminar on March 25 in Huntsville. Visit www.awea-al.com.

TPO invites your national, state or local association to post notices and news items in this column. Send contributions to [email protected].

worth noting

Feb. 4-5Michigan Water Environment Association-Michi-gan AWWA Joint Expo, Lansing Center. Visit www.mi-wea.org. Feb. 4-6New York Water Environment Association Annual Conference and Exhibition, New York Marriott Marquis. Visit www.nywea.org. Feb. 24-26California Water Environment Association P3S Annual Conference, Ontario. Call 510/382-7800 ext. 107, or visit www.cwea.org. Feb. 25-28Water Environment Federation 2014 Utility Management Conference. Call 703/684-2441 or visit www.wef.org. March 9-21Water Environment Federation 2014 Water and Wastewater Leadership Center, Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Visit www.wef.org. March 11-14Water Environment Federation Collection Systems 2014: Collection on the Chesapeake, Baltimore (Md.) Convention Center. Call 703/684-2441 or visit www.wef.org. March 18Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Spring Biosolids Symposium, Stevens Point. Visit www.dnr.wi.gov. March 29-April 2Missouri Water Environment Association/American Water Works Association Joint Annual Conference, Osage Beach. Visit www.mwea.org. April 6-9Alabama Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Orange Beach. Call 205/349-0067 or visit www.awea-al.com. April 6-10Florida Water Resources Conference, Coronado Springs Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Event is a joint conference of the Florida Section of the American Water Works Association, the Florida Water Environment Association and the Florida Water and Pollution Control Operators Associa-tion. Visit www.fwea.org. April 14-16Illinois Association of Water Pollution Control Operators Annual Conference, Crowne Plaza, Springfield. Visit www.iawpco.org. April 16-17Nebraska Water Environment Association Great Plains Conference, Embassy Suites, LaViasta. Visit www.ne-wea.org. April 22-24Nevada Water Environment Association Annual

Conference, location to be announced. Visit www.nvwea.org. April 22-24Alaska Water Wastewater Management Associa-tion Annual Conference, Centennial Hall, Juneau. Visit www.awwma.org. April 27-30Arkansas Water Works and Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Hot Springs. Visit www.awwwea.org. April 29-May 2California Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Santa Clara Convention Center. Call 510/382-7800 ext. 115, or visit www.cwea.org. May 3-7British Columbia Water & Waste Association Annual Conference and Trade Show, Whistler. Visit www.bcwwa.org. May 12-16New Jersey Water Environment Association Annual Conference, Bally’s Atlantic City. Visit www.njwea.org. May 18-21Water Environment Federation Residuals and Biosolids 2014: Sustainability Made Simple/Facilitating Resource Recovery, Austin (Texas) Convention Center. Call 703/684-2441 or visit www.wef.org.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS


SLUDGEINTERFACEDETECTION

Tel: +1 850 279 [email protected]

www.pulsar-pm.com

SBR’s, primary, secondary and tertiary clarifiers as well assettlement tanks/basins.

l Remote monitoring – no need for site visitl On screen echo and tank profiles, status and level, in up to

two tanks simultaneouslylSelf cleaning

and maintenance free

11. AMETEK POINT LEVEL SWITCH The Z-tron IV point level switch from AMETEK Drexelbrook features

an all-electronic design. Cote-Shield circuitry enables the switch to ignore coatings and buildup on the sensing element. Dust or tunneling won’t produce a false signal. The switch only reacts to actual high- or low-level conditions. The one-piece design allows for easy installation through a single 3/4-inch vessel opening. 800/553-9092; www.drexel brook.com.

12. BADGER METER TURBINE FLOWMETERS Vision Series turbine flowmeters from Badger Meter comply with the

lead-free provisions of the United States Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and are bisphenol A (BPA) free. The meters are designed for flow mea-surement of low-viscosity and nonaggressive liquids. 800/876-3837; www.badgermeter.com.

13. ROCKWELL AUTOMATION POWERFLEX 523

AC DRIVES The Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 520 Series of compact AC drives from

Rockwell Automation are designed for easy configuration. Files can be uploaded or downloaded to the drive using a standard USB connection. The drive also can be programmed through built-in human interface modules that display data on the LCD screen with scrolling QuickView text and detailed explanations of parameters and codes. 414/382-2000; www.rockwellautomation.com/industries/water.

14. RAIN FOR RENT RITEFLO APP RiteFlo, a free app from Rain for Rent, features a suite of hydraulic

estimation tools designed for water and wastewater professionals. The app includes a gravity flow logger and TDH calculator. It can be downloaded from the Apple App Store. 800/742-7246; www.rainforrent.com.

product news

11

12

13

14



ArkansasThe Arkansas Environmental Training Academy is offering the following

courses:• Feb. 4-6 – Class IV Wastewater, Fort Smith• Feb. 10-14 – Class III Wastewater, Fayetteville• Feb. 10-26 – Class II Wastewater, Fort Smith• March 3-6 – Class II Wastewater, Camden• March 18-20 – Advanced Industrial Wastewater, Fayetteville• March 25-27 – Advanced Industrial Wastewater, Hot Springs• April 8-9 – Basic Industrial Wastewater, Fayetteville• April 21-24 – Class II Wastewater, Burdette• April 29 - May 1 – Class I Wastewater, Hot Springs• May 12-20 – Basic Industrial Wastewater, Fort Smith• May 19-20 – Basic Industrial Wastewater, Camden• May 28-June 6 – Class I Wastewater, CamdenCall 870/574-4550 or visit www.sautech.edu/aeta/schedule.aspx.

FloridaThe University of Florida TREEO Center offers these courses in Gainesville: • Feb 4-5 – Water Reclamation and Treatment Processes• Feb 11-13 – Train the Trainer: How To Design and Deliver Effective

Training • Feb 24 – Basic Water and Wastewater Pump Maintenance• March 11-12 – Sequencing Batch Reactor Operation• March 18-20 – Activated Sludge Process Control and Troubleshooting• April 29 – The Science of Disinfection • April 30 – Energy Conservation at Water and Wastewater Treatment

Facilities • May 1– Dissolved Oxygen and Oxidation Reduction Potential TrainingVisit http://www.treeo.ufl.edu/wastewater-courses.aspx.

KansasThe Kansas Water Environment Association is offering the following courses:• Feb. 5 – Wastewater Collection Systems Management, Iola• Feb. 5 – Wastewater Stabilization Lagoons, Phillipsburg• Feb. 11-12 – Secondary Treatment/Review of Activated Sludge, Newton• Feb. 12-13 – Activated Sludge, Wichita• Feb. 13 – Small Wastewater Systems, Ulysses• Feb. 14 – Wastewater Treatment, Liberal• Feb. 19-20 – Math for Operators, Hutchinson• Feb. 25-26 – Basic Water/Wastewater/Distribution/Collections Math,

Goddard• Feb. 26-27 – Wastewater Plant O&M, Kansas City• Feb. 27 – Small Wastewater Systems, Hays• March 5-6 – Wastewater Collections, Hays• March 6 – Introduction to Water and Wastewater Conveyance, Phillipsburg• March 14 – Applied Math for Wastewater, Dodge City• March 21 – Wastewater Stabilization Lagoons, Syracuse• March 26 – Small Wastewater Systems, GoodlandVisit www.kwea.net.

MichiganThe Michigan Water Environment Association has a biosolids training

seminar March 11-12 in Big Rapids. Visit mi-wea.org.

MissouriThe Missouri Rural Water Association has developed a series of free

smartphone apps designed for wastewater operators using the Android and iPhone systems. They can be found by searching MRWA in the Google Play and Apple stores, respectively. Visit www.moruralwater.org.

Ohio

The Ohio Water Environment Association is offering the following courses:• March 13 – Government Affairs Workshop, Lewis Center• May 1 – Collection Systems Workshop, Lewis Center• May 21-22 – Operations/Lab Analysis Workshop, Lewis CenterVisit www.ohiowea.org.

WisconsinThe University of Wisconsin Department of Engineering-Professional

Development is offering the following courses in Madison:• March 24-25 – Upgrading Your Sanitary Sewer Maintenance Program• March 26-28 – Wastewater Pumping Systems and Lift Stations• April 15-17 – Nutrient Removal Engineering: Phosphorus and Nitrogen

in Wastewater TreatmentVisit http://epdweb.engr.wisc.edu. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is offering the follow-

ing courses:• Feb. 17-21 – General Wastewater Treatment-Intro and Advanced,

Madison• Feb. 25-26 – Anaerobic Digestion-Intro and Advanced, Green Bay• March 4-5 – Phosphorus Removal-Intro and Advanced, Janesville• March 10-14 – General Wastewater Treatment-Intro and Advanced,

Green Bay• March 18-19 – Ponds and Lagoons – Intro and Advanced, Black

River Falls• March 24-28 – General Wastewater Treatment – Intro and Advanced,

Chippewa Falls• March 26-28 – Wastewater Pumping Systems and Lift Stations,

MadisonVisit http://dnr.wi.gov.

TPO invites your national, state, or local association to post notices and news items in the Worth Noting column. Send contributions to [email protected].


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All wastewater treatment plants are not alike. That’s why plant designers prefer our Raptor® line of screening products, the innovative all-in-one units that screen, wash, convey and dewater screenings efficiently, capturing more fine solids and long fibers than other available screens. Raptor® products are adaptable to a wide range of configurations, giving you more choices for better performance in your unique application. They are preferred among plant operators for their simple operation, ease of use, and minimal maintenance. When performance counts, count on the industry leader for more than 80 years—Lakeside Equipment Corporation.

All tradem

arks owned by Lakeside Equipm

ent Corporation.

© 2014 Lakeside Equipm

ent Corporation.

ArkansasThe Arkansas Environmental Training Academy is offering the following

courses:• Feb. 4-6 – Class IV Wastewater, Fort Smith• Feb. 10-14 – Class III Wastewater, Fayetteville• Feb. 10-26 – Class II Wastewater, Fort Smith• March 3-6 – Class II Wastewater, Camden• March 18-20 – Advanced Industrial Wastewater, Fayetteville• March 25-27 – Advanced Industrial Wastewater, Hot Springs• April 8-9 – Basic Industrial Wastewater, Fayetteville• April 21-24 – Class II Wastewater, Burdette• April 29 - May 1 – Class I Wastewater, Hot Springs• May 12-20 – Basic Industrial Wastewater, Fort Smith• May 19-20 – Basic Industrial Wastewater, Camden• May 28-June 6 – Class I Wastewater, CamdenCall 870/574-4550 or visit www.sautech.edu/aeta/schedule.aspx.

FloridaThe University of Florida TREEO Center offers these courses in Gainesville: • Feb 4-5 – Water Reclamation and Treatment Processes• Feb 11-13 – Train the Trainer: How To Design and Deliver Effective

Training • Feb 24 – Basic Water and Wastewater Pump Maintenance• March 11-12 – Sequencing Batch Reactor Operation• March 18-20 – Activated Sludge Process Control and Troubleshooting• April 29 – The Science of Disinfection • April 30 – Energy Conservation at Water and Wastewater Treatment

Facilities • May 1– Dissolved Oxygen and Oxidation Reduction Potential TrainingVisit http://www.treeo.ufl.edu/wastewater-courses.aspx.

KansasThe Kansas Water Environment Association is offering the following courses:• Feb. 5 – Wastewater Collection Systems Management, Iola• Feb. 5 – Wastewater Stabilization Lagoons, Phillipsburg• Feb. 11-12 – Secondary Treatment/Review of Activated Sludge, Newton• Feb. 12-13 – Activated Sludge, Wichita• Feb. 13 – Small Wastewater Systems, Ulysses• Feb. 14 – Wastewater Treatment, Liberal• Feb. 19-20 – Math for Operators, Hutchinson• Feb. 25-26 – Basic Water/Wastewater/Distribution/Collections Math,

Goddard• Feb. 26-27 – Wastewater Plant O&M, Kansas City• Feb. 27 – Small Wastewater Systems, Hays• March 5-6 – Wastewater Collections, Hays• March 6 – Introduction to Water and Wastewater Conveyance, Phillipsburg• March 14 – Applied Math for Wastewater, Dodge City• March 21 – Wastewater Stabilization Lagoons, Syracuse• March 26 – Small Wastewater Systems, GoodlandVisit www.kwea.net.

MichiganThe Michigan Water Environment Association has a biosolids training

seminar March 11-12 in Big Rapids. Visit mi-wea.org.

MissouriThe Missouri Rural Water Association has developed a series of free

smartphone apps designed for wastewater operators using the Android and iPhone systems. They can be found by searching MRWA in the Google Play and Apple stores, respectively. Visit www.moruralwater.org.

Ohio

The Ohio Water Environment Association is offering the following courses:• March 13 – Government Affairs Workshop, Lewis Center• May 1 – Collection Systems Workshop, Lewis Center• May 21-22 – Operations/Lab Analysis Workshop, Lewis CenterVisit www.ohiowea.org.

WisconsinThe University of Wisconsin Department of Engineering-Professional

Development is offering the following courses in Madison:• March 24-25 – Upgrading Your Sanitary Sewer Maintenance Program• March 26-28 – Wastewater Pumping Systems and Lift Stations• April 15-17 – Nutrient Removal Engineering: Phosphorus and Nitrogen

in Wastewater TreatmentVisit http://epdweb.engr.wisc.edu. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is offering the follow-

ing courses:• Feb. 17-21 – General Wastewater Treatment-Intro and Advanced,

Madison• Feb. 25-26 – Anaerobic Digestion-Intro and Advanced, Green Bay• March 4-5 – Phosphorus Removal-Intro and Advanced, Janesville• March 10-14 – General Wastewater Treatment-Intro and Advanced,

Green Bay• March 18-19 – Ponds and Lagoons – Intro and Advanced, Black

River Falls• March 24-28 – General Wastewater Treatment – Intro and Advanced,

Chippewa Falls• March 26-28 – Wastewater Pumping Systems and Lift Stations,

MadisonVisit http://dnr.wi.gov.

TPO invites your national, state, or local association to post notices and news items in the Worth Noting column. Send contributions to [email protected].


All wastewater treatment plants are not alike. That’s why plant designers prefer our Raptor® line of screening products, the innovative all-in-one units that screen, wash, convey and dewater screenings efficiently, capturing more fine solids and long fibers than other available screens. Raptor® products are adaptable to a wide range of configurations, giving you more choices for better performance in your unique application. They are preferred among plant operators for their simple operation, ease of use, and minimal maintenance. When performance counts, count on the industry leader for more than 80 years—Lakeside Equipment Corporation.

All tradem

arks owned by Lakeside Equipm

ent Corporation.

© 2014 Lakeside Equipm

ent Corporation.

CALL FOR FREE CATALOG [email protected]

800-437-1146516-746-0852 FAX

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February 2014

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