Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Jim Nash announces a special groundbreaking for the Clinton River Water Resource Recovery Facility, formally known as the Pontiac Wastewater Treatment Plant. On Tuesday, Sept. 12, the event will begin at 10 a.m. and the ceremony will be held at the water resource recovery facility, located at 155 North Opdyke in Pontiac. The special kick-off highlights a major biosolid improvement project of the facility from its original 1960s design.
"This project will bring leading-edge technologies to wastewater treatment for Pontiac and contributing communities. Once completed, it will bring efficiencies to ratepayers for decades into the future," said Nash.
Building on the longstanding history of the Pontiac plant, the Clinton River Water Resource Recovery Facility will modernize the aging solids handling process. From the wastewater treatment process, the residual material produced in a concentrated product form that has consistency similar to wet mud is called sludge. The sludge undergoes further treatment to become biosolids. Biosolids are nutrient-rich organic matter that when recycled can be applied as a fertilizer to improve and maintain productive soils. It can also stimulate plant growth. In 2011, the outdated solids handling process using incineration was decommissioned due to high operating costs, stringent air emission rules, and projected costly repairs. The construction of a new modern biosolids treatment facility will consists of energy efficiency and sustainability with reusable products being produced.
The project will make it possible to utilize an innovative process called Thermal Hydrolysis Pretreatment (THP) to condition the solids prior to anaerobic digestion. The THP process consists of high temperatures and pressure to create a material that will degrade faster and more completely in the anaerobic digesters. Anaerobic Digestion is a biological process in which microorganisms break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen. Biogas (methane) and exceptional quality biosolid (fertilizer) are end products of the digestion process and produce a final product that has fewer odors. The generated biogas is used in the process to heat and pressurize the sludge. The improvements provide future opportunities for renewable energy to generate future revenue. For communities that send sanitary flow to be treated at this facility, there will be long-term economic benefits anticipated.
The Oakland County Water Resources office in working with design engineer CDM Smith Inc. has awarded Tools Contracting Group LLC for construction of the project in the amount of $32,370,771. In addition, the project qualified and is receiving $2.5 million in principal forgiveness from the state's Green Project Reserve (GPR), which is funded by the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program. For additional information about the GPR, visit www.michigan.gov/deq.
The Clinton River Recovery Facility will serve the communities of Auburn Hills, Independence Township, Lake Angelus, Lake Orion, Oakland Township, Orion Township, Oxford Township, the Village of Oxford, Pontiac, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Waterford Township, and West Bloomfield Township.
The new facility will have the unique distinction of being the second plant in the United States of America and the first in Michigan to use the emerging technology of Thermal Hydrolysis Pretreatment with Anaerobic Digestion. With proper biosolids management, useful materials are recycled on land and harmful materials are not released into lakes, rivers and streams.
Published: Tue, Aug 29, 2017
