NORWICH – Earlier this year, it was estimated that repairs to the rotating biological contactors at the City of Norwich Waste Water Treatment Plant would begin sometime in January; however according to Department of Public Works Superintendent Carl Ivarson, additional information and time may be needed before the repairs can be completed.
On Thursday morning, Ivarson told the members of the Public Works / Public Safety Committee that he hoped to obtain answers to his questions during a meeting on Jan. 30 with the Department of Environmental Conservation and the Chesapeake Bay Commission.
The DEC and the Chesapeake Bay Commission have been passing regulations that would limit the amount of phosphorous and nitrates that are released into the environment from waste water treatment plants. Ivarson told the committee that a smaller New York state treatment plant was recently upgraded to comply with the changes, and the cost for that plant exceeded $12 million.
The current plans for the waste water treatment plant upgrades total approximately $3.5 million. The funds would be used to repair the RBCs, a piece of the of a secondary treatment system. Six RBCs make up each train, and the wastewater plant is comprised of three trains. The RBC is made up of a series of closely spaced, high density plastic discs supported on a long shaft, and rotated by a mechanical drive. Sewage travels through the primary treatment area, where coarse materials are removed, before passing through the RBC units, which work to breakdown and stabilize organic pollutants.
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