The odors from outdoor sludge-drying pads from the Green Valley Wastewater Treatment Plant have generated complaints from neighbors, spurring the county to undertake odor-control operations.

Eric Wieduwilt, deputy director of planning and engineering for the Pima County Regional Wastewater Reclamation Department, said the county has begun planning and design work for a $2.5 million upgrade aimed at mitigating odors at the plant.

Among key steps, the county will enclose some operations at the plant and will start hauling sludge to the Ina Road wastewater treatment facility rather than drying it outdoors. The hauling cost is expected to be $243,000 a year.

Construction will start in July and will entail covering two sludge holding tanks and a gravity belt thickener that are now open-air operations. Also, a new odor control facility will filter the gases emanating from the tanks and the belt and aeration will be enhanced to reduce the formation of odorous gas in the holding tanks. Construction should be finished by mid-2013.

Bids are due January 27, 2012 for filtration improvements at the Easterly Wastewater Treatment Plant in Vacaville.

For more information go to: http://www.ci.vacaville.ca.us/departments/public_works/__documents/Latest%20CIP%20Bid%20Update.pdf

The McKinleyville Community Services District (MCSD) is considering significant upgrades to its wastewater management facility that will cost the district and ratepayers a large amount of money.

MCSD General Manager Norman Shopay said he wants board members to have an opportunity to visit a similar facility so on January 18 the board will visit the Colusa & Willows wastewater treatment plants.

A sewer fund will be used to repay loans for Holtville’s wastewater treatment plant rehabilitation project and the outfall main pipeline project.

The total cost of the wastewater treatment plant rehabilitation is about $7.5 million, and roughly $4.3 million for the outfall main project. Up to 50 percent of the projects’ costs may be provided by the financial division of the State Water Resources Control Board. In addition, the city could get 75 percent of the financing forgiven if it can demonstrate that it does not have enough sewer funding for the project. And if considered "severely disadvantaged," up to 100 percent of the loans not exceeding $6 million could be forgiven.

The outfall main pipeline project would run from the intersection of Olive Avenue and Ninth Street to a new manhole located near the wastewater treatment plant. Two sewer lines along residential blocks would also be built.

Meanwhile, the 60-year-old wastewater treatment plant needs to be refurbished and main sewer pipelines need to be replaced.

Holtville already has a cease and desist order from the California Regional Water Quality Control Board over ammonia discharges. If ammonia discharges are not reduced by 2014, the state will fine the city.

The Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board unanimously approved a strict 10-year sewage discharge permit for the capital region’s wastewater system in December 2010. The new permit requires the district to meet stringent wastewater treatment levels.

To meet those standards, the district must significantly upgrade its wastewater treatment plant. Required upgrades would reduce discharge limits for pollutants such as nitrogen, ammonia and pathogens.

Upgrades could cost between $1 billion and $2 billion by 2020, potentially tripling sewer bills for ratepayers in the region and quadrupling new construction and sewer hook-up feeds.

The Sacramento district appealed portions of the permit to the California Water Resources Control Board in January 2011, but the board has not yet considered the appeal.

"SRCSD is currently in limbo with our appeal, as we are held to all the permit conditions but with no certainty if they will ultimately be required," Stan Dean, SRCSD district engineer, said in a news release. "The result is that we could expend significant resources and dollars while waiting for final resolution."

Loyalton, the only incorporated city in Sierra County has made full use of a block grant from federal stimulus funds to reduce energy consumption at its wastewater treatment plant.

The city has replaced five existing standard plant surface pond aerators and impellers with new, automatic equipment powered by premium efficiency motors. With the upgrade completed in September, Loyalton will reduce the facility’s electricity costs by $2,281 and prevent 19,000 pounds of CO₂ emissions every year.

The improvement project was made possible with a $24,038 Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) from the U.S. Department of Energy under the American Recovery and Investment Act (ARRA).

Federal stimulus funds to small cities and counties awarded under the ARRA’s EECBG and administered by the Energy Commission are providing more than $33 million to 201 eligible localities throughout California. Large cities and counties are receiving funding directly from the U.S. DOE. For more information about ARRA funded projects go to: www.energy.ca.gov/recovery/

Federal regulations intended to clean the Chesapeake Bay will create hundreds of thousands of jobs in construction and monitoring, according to a report to be released by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, an environmental group.

Spending on sewage and storm-water treatment alone could support about 230,000 jobs in the region over the next 14 years, the foundation’s report found. That spending will be necessary to meet U.S. EPA requirements to reduce pollution in the bay.

The report comes as a debate rages in Washington over whether environmental and other regulations hurt the economy. Business groups and Republicans in the House of Representatives have called for repealing many federal rules, while environmentalists and Democrats in the Senate have resisted the effort.

"Clean air and clean water creates jobs," said William C. Baker, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's president, who said the argument that environmental regulations add to joblessness is "nothing less than absurd."

The Stonington Zoning Board of Appeals approved a number of variance requests by the Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA) at its first meeting of 2012. The necessary approvals will allow construction to begin at the Mystic wastewater treatment facility.

In November of 2010, Stonington voters approved an $18.3 million special obligation bond for the upgrade of the town’s three sewage treatment plants.

The rehabilitation includes "provisions for nitrogen removal" as well as to "accommodate projected sewage flows for more than 20 years into the future." According to the town, the Mystic plant is not only the oldest of the town’s three plants—in service nearly 40 years—but has "not undergone a significant upgrade or renovation since its commissioning." It currently is diverting some of its wastewater sludge to the plant in Stonington Borough.

It is expected that $14.2 million of the $18.3 million allocated for the projects will be spent to renovate the Mystic plant.

The high-tech bioreactor membranes at Kuna’s North Wastewater Treatment Plant appear to be failing at an alarmingly rapid rate, according to city engineer Gordon Law.

"The membranes have not performed as well as advertised nor does their useful life appear to be even close to what was expected," according to Law. "In fact, the membranes may not last the winter." That could mean a substantial and unanticipated cost to the city. Law budgeted $705,000 for new membranes — in the year 2017-18.

The membranes went into operation when the city’s New North Wastewater Treatment Plant came online in August 2009. The membranes, which use a biochemical process to treat sewage, were purchased with a 10-year warranty, meaning the city could reasonably expect to not have to buy new membranes for 10 years.

However, less than three years later, the permeability of the membranes has considerably decreased to the point that they will need to be replaced in the next couple of months.

Bids are due January 13, 2012 for a project at the Zionsville Wastewater Treatment Plant.

For more information go to: www.h2bid.com/procurement-notice-147733.html

A consent decree was filed in federal court recently outlining plans for the most extensive capital project in South Bend’s history in order to ensure compliance with the federal Clean Water Act.

A 20-year, $509.5 million long-term control plan to reduce combined sewer overflows (CSOs) in the city of South Bend was signed by Mayor Stephen J. Luecke along with officials from the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. EPA, the state of Indiana and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.

Nearly 800 other cities with aging sewer infrastructure find themselves facing the same kind of massive investments – upwards of $50 billion – as a requirement of the Clean Water Act. Since 2006, South Bend already has invested or committed through current rates $100 million towards the $509.5 million plan. Initial efforts have included expansion of the 55-year-old Wastewater Treatment Plant, separating existing combined sewers into separated storm and sanitary sewers, and building capacity for additional storage of combined sanitary sewage and storm water.

When the city of South Bend began negotiations with the EPA in 2003, discharge levels into the St. Joseph River were about 2 billion gallons per year. By 2010, through early action the city had reduced that volume to 750 million gallons per year. The volume of overflows will be reduced by 95 percent from the starting baseline overflow in a typical year. The number of CSO events will be reduced to four per year. South Bend will be held to 4 overflows per year level of control and has two windows of opportunity through innovative technology and green solutions for reducing the $ 509.5 million cost estimate of the default CSO Long Term Control Plan.

In the current four-year funding period already approved by the Mayor and Common Council, the city will invest another $70 million to complete the $102,193,000 of work projected by the city to meet EPA requirements for Phase 1.

In Phase 2 between 2014 and 2031, the City will spend $367.7 million. Mandated features of the long-term control plan include:

• Upgrading the capacity of the Wastewater Treatment Plant to 100 MGD, matching the wet-weather capacity of the existing storm-sewer interceptor, the primary sewer line conveying outflow to the wastewater treatment plant.
• The addition of seven new storage tanks, a storage conduit as well as a 12,000-foot storage and conveyance mechanism running parallel to the existing interceptor from CSO 6 at Leland Avenue and Riverside Drive to the Wastewater Treatment Plant.
• Construction of a storage conduit running parallel to the river from the Howard Park Ice Rink to CSO 25 at North Shore Drive and Lafayette Boulevard.

An additional challenge facing South Bend is the requirement to control its disinfection rate to achieve water quality standards at the Michigan state line – about 2.6 miles from the Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Commonwealth Engineers, Inc. Vice President Mark Sullivan recently presented another, possibly "more financially feasible," option to solve Carbon's wastewater treatment issues.

During its monthly meeting, Sullivan proposed a project to enlarge the existing wastewater lagoons in an attempt to save money that Carbon Town Council members say they just do not have.

The lagoons system consists of three earthen basins, two that treat the wastewater and one that acts as a holding lagoon. "It holds the wastewater before it releases it into the receiving stream," Sullivan said. "My suggestion is to expand the dikes to the north and south to increase the holding capacity from 2.7 million gallons to 4.15 million gallons and make it so they don't have to discharge in the winter."

Effective Jan. 1, 2009, Indiana added two new criteria standards, which requires a limit of discharge for ammonia and E. coli levels. Since September, council members expressed they are worried Carbon does not have enough funding to meet the water quality standard improvements the state is mandating. Currently, Carbon's waste stabilization lagoons are in violation of the new standards. The existing lagoons are not designed to effectively treat ammonia in cold weather. So far, all the other possible options suggested besides the No Action Alternative have not been financially feasible for the town.

The total cost for the project is approximately $476,000.

"If this option is chosen, we would spend 2012 getting ready to pursue an OCRA (Office of Community and Rural Affairs) grant in 2013, and the town is required to come up with 10 percent of the money for the project," Sullivan said.

The council will discuss the project further later this month.

Wilton is moving forward with plans for improvements to its wastewater treatment plant.

The Wilton City Council has approved submitting the plans for Priority A improvements, prepared by the HR Green engineering firm of Cedar Rapids, to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The Priority A improvements are mandated by the DNR. A representative of HR Green told the Council the original estimated cost of $1.5 million has been reduced to $1.359 million.

Once the permit and funding are in place, the project can go out for bids with construction taking around a year to complete.

Worth County's supervisors are proceeding with plans to build a new water and wastewater treatment facility as early as 2013.

"We signed an agreement to keep McClure (Engineering Co.) to start the next phase to build a new facility," Supervisor Dennis May said, referring to the county's engineering consultant."(McClure) will be contacting some potential landowners and will start the process of permitting with the Department of Natural Resources." McClure Engineering consultant Terry Lutz told supervisors they must submit a plan to the DNR detailing the county's plans for wastewater treatment at the interchange.

The county is also seeking to purchase land for the facility and is negotiating - through McClure - with landowners within a half- to three-mile radius of the interchange, May said.

It is hoped construction can begin in the fall, with completion possibly in November 2013.

In December, Worth County became the owner of a water and sewer system at the Diamond Jo Casino interchange, after purchasing the assets of Xenia Rural Water District, which was unable to complete a treatment facility due to monetary problems.

The existing system consists of a water system and water tower, plus a sewer lagoon that does not meet DNR standards, May said.

Plans are to build a Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR). The SBR style plant was chosen because it requires only a small amount of land - two to four acres, and meets current DNR standards. The plant could be modified quite easily in future if environmental standards were to become stricter.

An approaching July 1 deadline convinced the Wapello City Council to authorize city engineer Hart-Frederick Consultants, Tiffin, to begin design work on a $1.73 million wastewater treatment improvement project.

"We need to get that going," engineer Mike Hart told the council, adding the city would have two years to actually complete the work.

City officials said they hoped the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) would be flexible with the completion deadline, explaining the city had moved forward faster than planned on sewer separation projects.

Both the treatment improvements and the sewer separation projects were included in a revised list of required projects the city received from the DNR in 2007 when it was issued a new National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit. Under that list, the sewer separation projects were to be completed by 2020, but most of that work has now been done.

Any adjustments however would not likely affect the July 1 design deadline and Hart pointed out a 30-day facility plan review had not raised any questions."We can start the design (work)," he told the council.

Moving forward with that portion of the project would also trigger efforts to obtain funding assistance for the improvements. The city is seeking a $500,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) to help with some of the costs.

There could be some costly repairs facing the odor control system at Rockland's wastewater treatment plant.

At issue is the exhaust pipe in which all the air from the wastewater system is sent. The 48-foot fiberglass pipe is showing cracks and there is a problem with the fan that sends the air through the exhaust. The cost simply to remove the pipe to determine what the problems are is likely to be $25,000. If the pipe has to be replaced the costs will be more than $100,000. A complication to the repairs of the system is that the company that built and installed the system in 1999 has gone out of business.

Wastewater Pollution Control Director Terry Pinto said, however, that if the exhaust pipe has to be replaced and the odor control system shut down temporarily, the odors will be substantially less severe than prior to installation of the odor system in 1999.

Maryland’s Board of Public Works has approved $19 million for wastewater treatment plant upgrades in Baltimore City and Carroll, Frederick and Anne Arundel counties.

The projects are an important part of the state’s efforts to improve the Chesapeake Bay and other state waterways.

Below is a list of projects that were approved in the following locations:

Back River Wastewater Treatment Plant Enhanced Nutrient Removal Upgrade - Baltimore City

Maryland City Water Reclamation Facility Enhanced Nutrient Removal Upgrade - Anne Arundel County

Westminster Wastewater Treatment Plant Enhanced Nutrient Removal Upgrade - Carroll County

Gas House Pike Wastewater Treatment Plant Enhanced Nutrient Removal Upgrade - Frederick County

The continuing cost of excess water infiltrating Smithburg’s sewer lines surfaced again recently during a Smithsburg Town Council meeting. Smithburg paid $85,000 last year to treat excess water leaking into the sewage system.

Officials are considering doing smoke tests to determine where the leaks might be.

The town has hired a company to make a video of the interiors of sewer lines to identify problem areas, and the major problem areas identified by the company have been addressed, Myers said. There are other problems that have been identified and officials decided to keep working on those problems, she said.

In the next week, residents of Fitchburg will receive their sewer bills, which include a 60 percent rate hike from their last annual bill to pay for federal- and state-mandated sewer projects. But, instead of receiving one bill for the year, residents will receive a bill each month starting this month, said Joseph A. Jordan, wastewater commissioner.

The current system consists of one sewer pipe that manages combined storm water and sewage. That was fine, said Mr. Jordan, in the 1970s when it was built. Since, however, new regulations under the Clean Water Act were passed. Splitting the pipe into two and separating storm water from sewage will reduce the amount of sewage overflowing into the Nashua River and its tributaries.

Additionally, the wastewater plant is inadequate to meet requirements that have become more stringent over the years. All sewage is treated at the East Wastewater Treatment Plant before it is discharged into the Nashua River. The plant is working over capacity, and there are times when too much flow enters the plant, and untreated, polluted water is discharged into the river. Moreover, the EPA is allowing less phosphorous into the river, so the plant must be improved to remove more phosphorous from the wastewater.

The work will cost $8.8 million. The city has already spent $9.3 million separating six miles of the city’s 20 miles of sewer pipes. Out of the $8.8 million, $5.5 million will pay for separating 3.3 more miles of sewer pipes throughout the city, and the balance will pay for mandated upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant and designs for 16,000 more feet of sewer separation.

In all, the city may have to fund $100 million to $125 million in mandated sewer projects through 2023, if it is required to separate all of its sewer pipes.

Bids are due January 26, 2012 for wastewater treatment plant upgrades at the North Knoochiching Sanitary District in International Falls.

For more information go to:

http://www.h2bid.com/procurement-notice-147577.html

or to view the bid click here:

http://qap.questcdn.com/qap/action/IPPshowProjData?jobCategoryNo=324406&group=12108&provider=12108&sortType=0&jobNo=1822736

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved Montana's plan to phase in strict limits on water pollution from municipal wastewater treatment plants, industry and other sources.

Montana Department of Environmental Quality Director Richard Opper said that under the state plan, most major polluters still would have to make changes to meet Montana's flexible standard for two pollutants — nitrogen and phosphorus.

But the approved plan includes variances for cities and companies that would allow them to meet the new federal standards over two decades. That means polluters could avoid huge costs they otherwise would have faced to upgrade pollution control equipment more immediately.

The EPA last year raised concerns about the state's phased-in approach because it does not require individual polluters to prove economic harm before they are given more time to meet federal standards.

But the federal agency backed down after the state in recent months presented studies that said the cost of meeting the standard would be significant. Although precise costs were not provided, some municipalities have said they would be forced to spend tens of millions of dollars to meet the federal rules using current technologies.

The phased-in approach was authorized in by the Montana Legislature last year. Under that legislation, the state would revisit its requirements for polluters every three years and adjust them as more cost-effective and efficient water treatment technologies emerged.

The state's plan to control nutrient pollution will next go before the Board of Environmental Review, for adoption possibly sometime this coming summer or fall, said a DEQ spokeswoman. After that, the DEQ will issue a formal rule setting the nutrient standard and allowing the variances.

The York City Council will consider bids for work at the municipal wastewater treatment plant disinfection facility when they meet for their first regular meeting in the new year.

It’s been recommended that the council approve the bid from Neuvirths Construction Company of Mitchell, SD, in the amount of $558,411. The council budgeted $540,000 for the mandated improvements.

Mark Christiansen, public works director, explained that the city is required to install an ultraviolet light system as part of the disinfection process.

Bids are due February 10, 2012 for an odor control project at the Concord Wastewater Treatment Plant.

To view the bid, click here: http://www.ci.concord.nh.us/Purchasing/B15-12%201.9.12.pdf

Controlling the odors that waft from the Cape May County sewer treatment plant could cost as much as $5 million, a cost the county Municipal Utility Authority (MUA) does not want to pass onto its customers.

Bill Cathcart, wastewater program manager for the MUA, said the upgrades could better control the odor, but not entirely eliminate the smells prominent in the summer.

"Our users would end up paying for it," Cathcart said. The MUA’s budget is $30 million a year, so a large expense such as this would have to be covered by raising sewer rates, which it does not want to do.

The wastewater treatment plant, which handles waste from the Wildwoods, Shawcrest in Lower Township and parts of Middle Township, was put into service in 1988 and can handle as many as 14.1 MGD. However, it operates well under capacity, handling an average of 6.4MGD last summer. The plant, built in a central location on the Middle and Lower Township borders, also takes effluent from plants in Lower Township and Cape May and repumps that material into the ocean.

"One of the advantages it has is nobody lives near it," Cathcart said. While the plant has typical odor-control devices used in other sewage treatment facilities, it does not have upgraded odor controls used in plants located near residential communities." However, locating a sewage treatment plant on the main entranceway into a resort island is less than ideal.

The wastewater treatment facility in the town of Huntington, located on Long Island, NY, will take delivery of three new Atlas Copco oil-free, low pressure blowers during the first quarter of 2012.

Following a competitive bid, Huntington selected Atlas Copco ZS75-K-900 low pressure screw blowers to reduce the energy usage of their aeration blower systems. This will decrease energy costs while enabling the wastewater plant to operate in a more efficient and environmentally friendly manner.

As part of the bid process, Huntington conducted an instrumented head-to-head test between the different manufacturers they were considering. During the test each machine operated simultaneously to determine conformity with stated requirements and to enable the town's consulting engineer to record each machine's energy-efficiency level. The outcome of this test was pivotal in Atlas Copco becoming the successful bidder.

Air blowers typically represent up to 70 percent of the total electricity costs for municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants. The ZS series of low pressure screw blowers average 30 percent more energy-efficient operation than conventional lobe blower technology and provide a continuous, highly-reliable, energy-efficient and 100 percent oil-free air supply.

The Utilities Committee of Salem has agreed to recommend a draft ordinance allowing bids and the awarding of contracts for Phase I improvements to the city sewage treatment plant.

The committee agreed to send the ordinance to council for its consideration after hearing a presentation by city Utilities Superintendent Don Weingart and comments by city Utilities Commission Chairman Geoff Goll.

The Utilities Department has had a money surplus built up in anticipation of the improvements needed to meet Ohio EPA requirements and will use that wastewater surplus money to pay the engineering and construction costs.

Upgrades are necessary in order to reduce the amount of phosphorous discharge as required by the OEPA which is requiring a level at no more than 1 milligram per liter. Most plants average domestic levels of 12 mg/l or less of phosphorous and those levels can be reduced to the proper number chemically, but in the city's case, the phosphorous levels are higher due to the waste coming into the system from local industry.

The city is still waiting for written approval from the state for a local limit of 24 mg/l for the amount of phosphorous discharged into the wastewater treatment plant. The Phase 1 improvements, which will improve the removal of solids and improve suspended solids compliance issues, are part of a larger, three-phase plan to reduce the phosphorous levels.

Phase 1 will include the installation of mechanical equipment in the clarifiers to improve discharge of solids and construction of a new building for solid thickening to improve the removal of solids.

The construction cost was estimated at $2,319,000, with engineering estimated at $472,600.

The Utilities Commission is currently reviewing proposals for engineering firms for the project. Goll asked that council pass the ordinance for accepting bids and awarding contracts as an emergency so they can seek bids right away.

The tentative schedule for the project put the awarding of contracts in August, with construction to begin in September and completion expected in August 2013.

After twice being let out to bid, contracts for improvements to the October Hills wastewater treatment plant have been awarded to two contractors.

On the recommendation of Holmes County Engineer Chris Young, county commissioners awarded the contract for electrical work to Wood Electric. The New Philadelphia company submitted a bid of $141,400, and was deemed by Young to be lowest and most qualified. The engineer's estimate for the electrical work was $160,750.

Recommended for being lowest and most qualified for the general contract work and both alternate A and alternate B was Simonson Construction of Ashland, which submitted bids totaling $726,258. The engineer's estimate for the three areas were $436,500 for general, $55,800 for alternate A and $276,620 for alternate B.

Nine contractors submitted bids on the project. Contractors were invited to submit bids in four areas: General contract work, alternate A (demolition of the existing plant), alternate B (sewer line work in the October Hills campground) and electrical.

The initial problem with the estimates was identified by one of the contractors. Apparently, W.E. Quicksall & Assoc., which designed and engineered the new plant, obtained inaccurate figures from the manufacturer when determining a cost estimate for the job, which was used by the companies in fashioning their bids for the work. The $714,840 estimate provided by Quicksall was low. Only three contractors submitted bids the first time around in November.

Based on Quicksall's design, capacity will increase from 30,000 gallons to 90,000 gallons per day, allowing for 300 camp lots and a commercial business in the area to tie onto the system. The project should be completed by August.

A national engineering firm will take a second look at plans for a project to expand and upgrade the wastewater treatment plant that serves three Abington communities.

Members of the Abington Regional Wastewater Authority voted to award a $25,000 contract to HDR Inc. for a second-opinion review of plans. Having this type of review is part of the requirements to apply for a Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority, or Pennvest, loan or grant to help fund the project, expected to cost more than $30 million and begin sometime this year.

The sewer system serves Clarks Green, Clarks Summit and South Abington Twp. In addition to increasing the plant's capacity, the project will upgrade the wastewater treatment processes to comply with a federal mandate requiring the decrease of nutrients and sediment discharged in treated wastewater.

The HDR engineers' review could lead to money-saving ideas for the project. HDR will likely begin the review around the beginning of February and should submit its report to the authority within 45 days.

This will allow the authority to submit an application for a Pennvest grant or loan as early as this spring.

Curwensville Municipal Authority recently heard a notice of intent to award bids has been sent to two contractors that submitted offers to replace a screen at the wastewater treatment plant and upgrade a pumping station.

A representative of CET Engineering Services, Huntingdon, reported the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Appalachian Regional Commission had reviewed bids submitted for the project and approved the two lowest ones chosen by the authority.

Notices were sent to Hickes Associates Inc., Alexandria, which submitted a proposal of $585,000 for general construction on the screen and pumping station and Dave Kronenweatter Electric, Kersey, with an offer of $85,912 for the electrical components of the two projects.

The companies must now provide proof of insurance and bonds for their work. Once ARC has approved these then the notices to proceed will be issued to the companies. The bid advertisement specifications allows the authority 120 days to award the contracts and notices could be issued in February or March, depending on the length of time taken for ARC's review.

The authority has secured a grant from USDA and ARC of $250,000 that is being matched with a $500,000 loan from a local bank to pay for the work.

Bids are due January 27, 2012 for tertiary upgrades to the Wastewater Treatment Plant in Smithfield.

For more information go to:

http://www.h2bid.com/procurement-notice-147585.html

or

http://www.smithfieldri.com/pdf/engineer/SmithfieldPublicWorkshop_032211.pdf

Bids are due February 15, 2012 for the wastewater treatment plant expansion in Columbia.

For more information go to: www.h2bid.com/procurement-notice-146992.html

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation is advocating for the 2012 Virginia General Assembly to authorize $300 million in bonds for wastewater treatment plant upgrades to improve Bay water quality and help meet the requirements of the Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) pollution-reduction plan issued by the U.S. EPA in December 2010.

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has estimated that $359 million worth of wastewater treatment projects will be needed over the next 10 years to meet Bay TMDL requirements. A state bond package could reduce local utility-rate increases that would be needed to pay for the projects. At least one large utility, the Hampton Roads Sanitation District, is supporting the bond proposal. Gov. McDonnell’s proposed 2012-2013 biennial budget, released in December 2011, did not include a request for such a bond package.

Bids are due January 19, 2012 for work at the Barton Pump Station. The project includes upgrading the existing pump station, completing the forcemain repair and restoring the street end park, increasing the station capacity to 33 MGD, adding emergency backup power, and adding a new odor control unit.

For more information go to:

http://www.stellarj.com/bidding/cat_view/36-open-for-bid-projects/558-01192012-barton-pump-station.html

Bids are due January 24, 2012 for construction at the Pullman wastewater treatment plant.

For more information go to:

http://www.stellarj.com/bidding/cat_view/36-open-for-bid-projects/562-01242012-pullman-wwtp/565-project-specifications.html

The Green Bay Metropolitan Sewerage District plans to invest $147 million to boost its capacity, replace outdated equipment and meet new environmental standards.

Two more public meetings are set on a Green Bay regional wastewater treatment upgrade that will increase sewer rates more than 50 percent. The district plans to increase sewer rates 9 percent annually for five years, starting this year to pay for upgrades.

Work is scheduled to begin in 2014.

Recently, Sechelt council took the first step toward making good on new Mayor John Henderson’s promise to have a world-class sewage treatment facility built within 18 months of being elected.

Council held a special meeting on Jan. 4 to pass a motion asking for expressions of interest on potential wastewater treatment technology options for Sechelt.

Sechelt’s current wastewater treatment system is nearing capacity. The previous council secured a grant, found a location and hired a project manager to oversee the building of a biosolids facility with the goal to extend the life of the current system until money to build a new treatment plant could be found.

Henderson was a vocal opponent to the biosolids plan at the time and lobbied council to look into different system options, saying Sechelt could afford to build a complete solution.

Henderson is confident the grant money already earmarked for the biosolids facility will still be usable if a new plan is put into action, as a biosolids component will be included in any plan. He is however, unsure if the current project manager would be qualified to keep the position.

The City of Cornwall is taking bids for a construction project at its wastewater treatment facility.

An information session is scheduled Wednesday, Jan. 18.

The project includes both new construction and renovation of existing facilities. The work includes earthworks, concrete works, process piping, HVAC, installation of wastewater treatment process equipment, electrical modification and improvements. It will involve sub-contracting with pre-selected equipment suppliers, plus the supply and installation of instrumentation and control panels.

Contract documents are available from Corinne Ford of Gilmore Reproductions at 613 727-5610 or by e-mail at fordc@gilmore.ca. A list of pre-qualified bidders is available from Gilmore Reproductions.

Bidders are also listed at Reed Construction Data Canada Building Reports, project ID 1305510.

The information meeting (including the opportunity to ask questions) for the Cornwall wastewater treatment plant project scheduled at 10:00 a.m. Jan. 18. The city says all bidders, sub-trades and suppliers are welcome to attend either or both meetings.

The project is funded by both the federal and provincial governments.

Both North Vancouver mayors will play leading roles at Metro Vancouver in the upgrade of the Lions Gate Wastewater Treatment Plant.

District of North Vancouver Mayor Richard Walton is no longer vice-chairman of the Metro board, a position he held for three years, but will instead chair the finance committee, which has to give the green light to all major expenditures undertaken by Metro. Meanwhile, City of North Vancouver Mayor Darrell Mussatto will chair the utilities commission, which will shepherd the expensive sewage plant upgrade through the regional government.

The plant upgrade will cost upwards of $400 million. That is the estimate to convert the Lions Gate plant to secondary treatment from primary treatment, something the federal government now requires.

Richmond’s Iona sewage plant also requires an update, though is second on the priority list.

To date, the federal and provincial governments have not committed to contributing to the Lions Gate conversion. If they don’t, local taxpayers could see utility fees increase eightfold by 2030, according to a Metro report.

Honeywell Process Solutions, Morristown, NJ has received a 15 year, $88.6 million contract from the city of Los Angeles to upgrade the control systems used to manage the city’s wastewater treatment system. The Honeywell technology will provide system operators with centralized control of the entire system, which connects 6,700 miles of sewer lines to four main treatment plants handling a total of 550 MGD of wastewater for Los Angeles and 29 other cities.

The project is scheduled to begin during the first half of 2012 and will take an estimated seven years to complete. Honeywell will provide support services for another eight years.

You can track all the water chemical bids in the new database in the report at:

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/TofC.htm

Here are the titles added since the last update.

Greenwich, CT

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1944

Lawrenceville, NJ

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1945

Columbus, GA

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1946

Columbus, OH

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1952

Aliquippa, PA

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1954

Atlanta, GA

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1967

Harrison, AR

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1949

Winslow, NJ

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1950

Clifton, NJ

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1951

Denton, TX

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1953

Davenport, IA

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1955

California, MD

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1956

Lexington, MD

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1957

Tempe, AZ

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1958

Peterborough, ON, Canada

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1959

Agawam, MA

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1960

Tallahassee, FL

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1961

Mt. Clemens, MI

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1963

Warren, MI

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1964

Sarasota, FL

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1965

St. Augustine, FL

https://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Universal_Water_Chemical/Subscriber/uwcDB/totentry.asp?ref=1966

E-mail: editor@mcilvainecompany.com