Aberdeen upgrades wastewater facilities

Aberdeen has some new equipment at its wastewater facility.

The city recently completed a construction project on its old wastewater building. New technology and features were added, and some old equipment was upgraded.

Construction on the new facility started back in 2012 but the process to get an upgraded building started even a few years earlier. It all got underway in 2001 when an engineering study found the city’s wastewater facility lacking. Another study done in 2009 found the same results.

Both studies showed Aberdeen’s current facility would not meet a compliance agreement with the Department of Environmental Quality.

So a $6.9 million project was started to improve the facility.

New features were added, like a better grit vortex and screen filtering system. It pulls out all the grit, rocks and trash in the water. A new IFAS system was also added. An IFAS system aerates the water, bringing oxygen to it.

A larger generator and two clarifiers were also added to help handle larger quantities of water. The facility also added an ultraviolet cleaning system rather than a chlorine-based system.

Craig Wampler, an Aberdeen city council member who has been a part of the project since 2003, said the changes are increasing efficiency.

“The plant we have also gives us a greater ability to take in any increased flows that we might have,” Wampler said. “Plus, the3 plant has been built to accommodate some growth in Aberdeen if it were to happen in the next 20 or 30 years.”

The plant currently takes in an average of about 250,000 gallons of water per day. But the city does see an occassional spike where up to 1 million gallons per day come through. The old system would back up, but the new one is built to handle a larger capacity.

Wampler said this has been a much-needed project for the city.

“I think this project has been something that you know is really helping Aberdeen,” Wampler said. “We now won’t have to worry about not being able to take care of our wastewater needs.”

“I’m proud of what we have,” he said. “We’ve had a few people that have come out and looked at our plant and told us that it’s one of the nicest plants that they’ve seen. I feel pretty good about what we wound up with.”

Some existing equipment, such as the drying beds or aerobic digestors, were raised up to meet flood plain levels.

Wampler said all the changes done at the plant will not only get the facility up to speed with federal regulations, but it will help meet future regulations from the DEQ and the EPA.

Wampler said one other requirement of the new permit from the Environmental Protection Agency is that Aberdeen remove larger amounts of phosphorous. Wampler said this is something the city hopes to fix in the near future.

There will be a ribbon cutting and open house at the plant for the public Friday, June 24 from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. The facility is located at 2695 West 1750 South in Aberdeen.