When aging wastewater treatment plants reach a time when they are in need of upgrading or expanding to meet increasing demands on their capabilities, opportunities arise to consider introducing new technologies to replace old equipment and build new facilities that improve operational reliability. Where a plant is several decades old, it is possible that certain mechanical elements of the original build may no longer be available, or have been superseded by new designs and technologies.
The Big Creek Water Reclamation Facility in Fulton County, Georgia, USA now in its final stages of construction is making the most of the latest technologies on the market. Constructed in the early 1970’s, Big Creek had at that time a daily flow capacity of 2,840m³ (0.75 US mg). However, by 2015 the facility had reached 80% of its average daily flow capacity so by law its operators, Fulton County Public Works Department, had to formulate plans to upgrade and increase the capacity of Big Creek. The plans had to ensure that the project would improve operational reliability, meet existing and future drinking water and wastewater treatment demands, and comply with strict discharge levels into the nearby Chattahoochee River.
Courtesy of KSB.