The Pierre City Commission has approved a bond resolution to secure funding for a $15.3 million upgrade at the city’s wastewater treatment plant.
Utilities director Brad Palmer says some of the equipment is 20 or so years old and to keep it operating, parts of the infrastructure need to be replaced.
The plant, located in southeast Pierre, processes about 1.5 million gallons of wastewater each day.
Palmer says this is the last in a series of upgrades being done at the wastewater treatment plant in the past few years.
Palmer says the new odor control process will likely be of most interest to the general public. He says they’re installing a biofiltration unit designed to capture gasses during the treatment process. After being captured, he says the odorous gasses will be run through wood chips and stone to diminish the smell.
Other changes include new piping to take the wastewater to the aeriation basins, the first step in the treatment process. Additionally, the aged primary clarifier, which screens out solids, will be removed, piping on the back end of the process will be replaced and a new structure will be built to help with flood protection.
The project will be funded by a loan from the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources and repaid by existing user rates. Work is expected to begin early next year and be completed by early 2022.
The City of Pierre provides three primary utility services– electric, water and wastewater. All three have either undergone or are in the process of undergoing major modernization. This year, the city finished up an eight-year upgrade to its electrical substations and distribution infrastructure. Next month, work will begin on the city’s new Water Treatment Facility.
Photo credit: City of Pierre
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