Completion of $54 Million in Upgrades Improve Reliability and Capacity

The District completed its ten-year, $54 million plan of improvements to the wastewater System

The District has recently completed the final projects in its $54 million plan to improve overall system reliability and capacity. These include the following:

The Wet Weather Flow Upgrade Project has been completed and addresses new discharge regulations, manages peak wet weather flows, and improves treatment plant performance and reliability. The Project includes:

• a new headworks to improve overall plant efficiency and discharge water quality and reduces downstream maintenance and disinfection demands.
• a new 600,000-gallon equalization storage basin reduces the need for blending during high flows, and allows for temporary plant shutdowns to perform maintenance or other work.
• In addition, tertiary treatment capacity was increased from one to six million gallons per day with enhanced technology to greatly improve discharge water quality and reduce disinfection chemical demands.

The new clarifier shown under construction.

The recently completed treatment plant upgraded included the construction of a backup clarifier. This will allow the District to maintain one clarifier when the other is down, and will handle more volume during heavy rains. The new clarifier is covered to improve odor control and safety — and the rehabilitated clarifier will also be covered. The completed project provides several benefits:

• All treatment processes will have full redundancy,
• The treatment plant will provide increased reliability and improved water quality.
• The treatment plant will handle more volume without concerns of spills or passing the wastewater through without full treatment

The Coloma Street Pump Station Replacement Project has been completed which increases firm capacity of the District’s gravity interceptor by 4.2 MGD at a critical point in the conveyance system to mitigate potential sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) during peak storm events.

The Generator Reliability Improvements Project has been completed which improves overall system reliability and capacity during power outages. This project also reduces emergency callouts and the need to mobilize portable equipment in preparation for storms and/or planned power outages.