By 2005, Camp Shelby’s 65-year-old sewer and wastewater system was breaking down. It was built during World War II to handle 100,000 troops per day at a flow rate of 10 MGD, but the modern camp’s population is only around 1,000, with 5,000-7,000 troops rotating through for training. The current flow rate of 200,000 gallons per day was not enough for the 10 MGD activated sludge facility to operate properly, but infiltration during heavy rains would cause the flow rate to spike by a factor of 50, creating more problems. WGK, Inc., utilized a two-phase approach to defeat the camp’s dilemmas. In Phase I, an ambitious sewer rehabilitation was carried out to reduce inflow and infiltration, and a new partially-mixed aerated lagoon system was designed in Phase II. WGK brought the system’s average daily flow down to 250,000 gallons per day, well below the 1 million gallon per day average daily flow discharge permit, and designed a cheaper, environmentally-friendly wastewater facility.
- Performed ambitious sanitary sewer rehab to reduce inflow and infiltration at a cost of $4 million in Phase I.
- Replaced System Control and Data Acquisition radios at nine sites.
- Relocated the discharge point to the Leaf River, increasing allowable discharge concentrations.
- New wastewater treatment facility requires 70 percent fewer maintenance man-hours.
- Uses less energy and has no emissions.
- Reduced the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permitted impact on waterways.
- Air Jammer in effluent pipe system eliminates the need for post-aeration system.
- Total Phase II Project Cost: $2.8 million
New wastewater treatment standards are here…
The release of new wastewater discharge permit limits next year could require extraordinary changes for smaller Mississippi towns operating treatment lagoons, while larger cities’ mechanical plants may also need some upgrades to meet the new restrictions.
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) is developing water quality standards for nutrients in order to meet court-mandated environmental reforms authorized decades ago by the federal Clean Water Act of 1972, but not fully implemented. The new regulations will require wastewater treatment systems to meet total nitrogen and total phosphorous limits for the first time, and could render some lagoons and plants obsolete overnight.
If you are unsure of how new nutrient standards will affect wastewater treatment in your city, town or industry, WGK can chart a course for your facility’s future. Call Greg Gearhart, PE, BCEE, CEE at 601-925-4444 for an assessment of your treatment operation.
