The Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority (RWSA) is alerting residents near its Moores Creek Advanced Water Resource Recovery Facility in Charlottesville, Virginia, to potential odor concerns over the next two weeks as crews remove settled solids from a holding pond.

The work involves completely draining a basin on the facility’s western side and clearing accumulated solids to allow concrete restoration. Exposing the solids during removal may temporarily increase odors, which RWSA expects to diminish quickly once the work is complete.

The holding ponds temporarily store wastewater when inflows exceed the facility’s treatment capacity during high-flow events. Stored wastewater is returned to the treatment process after flows subside.

The Moores Creek facility treats approximately 9.3 million gallons of wastewater per day from Charlottesville, Albemarle County’s urban ring and Crozet. It processes 98% of the wastewater handled daily by RWSA.

The pond work is part of an 18-month infrastructure rehabilitation program that has included structural and concrete repairs to equalization basins, primary clarifiers, the influent box and digester complex, among other facility assets.