Pennsylvania officials announced that the state is distributing $194.3 million for 28 drinking water, wastewater, stormwater and non-point source projects across the state. Of that funding, over $92 million will support 11 wastewater projects.
The funding for these projects comes from a combination of state funds approved by voters, Growing Greener funds, Marcellus Legacy funds, the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA) stimulus funds, the federal grant awards to PENNVEST from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments, and the recycled loan repayments from previous PENNVEST funding awards.
The wastewater projects receiving funding are as follows:
- Northwestern Chester County Municipal Authority received a $12,600,000 loan to make system upgrades for improved nitrification and aeration and to replace equipment that is approaching the end of useful life.
Nitrification upgrades include demolition of Tertiary Lagoon 2, demolition of the current Bio-Bloc System located in Tertiary Lagoons 1 and 2, and installation of 1 aerated moving bed biofilm reactor system, three -125-HP Turbo Blowers, and 1 blower/electrical building. Aeration upgrades include demolition of 10 existing surface aerators, and the installation of 33 fine bubble diffuser aerators in Primary Lagoons 1 and 2 and Tertiary Lagoon 1.
The replacement of end-of-life equipment includes vertical dry pit submersible lagoon pumps, Daft Tank skimmer arm assemblies, saturation tank and air compressor assemblies, chemical mixer assembly, process water tank, and exterior epoxy painting of the sludge holding tank.
This project will bring the Authority into ammonia-nitrogen (NH3-N) effluent concentration compliance for effluent that flows into the West Branch Brandywine Creek. - Curwensville Municipal Authority received a $970,740 grant and a $1,754,360 loan for Phase II (B) of a larger project.
This phase includes slip-lining of 2,300 feet of 8” clay sewer mains, the replacement of 10 brick utility maintenance holes with concrete versions, 400 feet of laterals, and 650 feet of 4” sewer force main, and upgrades to valves, piping, controls, and other appurtenances at the wastewater treatment plant.
Security upgrades will also be made to the treatment facility by updating the remote pumping station alarm systems and installing new doors and windows in the control building. This project will reduce sewer overflows and excess inflow and infiltration during wet weather events. - North East Township Water and Sewer Authority received a $2,441,314 loan to expand wastewater service to 112 homes, developable lots, and 2 businesses between Chase Road and the NY state line as well as for the new Edgewater Development, planning construction for another 20 large homes.
The project will include the construction and installation of various-sized SDR=11 HDPE low-pressure sewer pipes: 3,587 feet of 2”, 4,969 feet of 3” and 8,600 feet of 4”. In addition, 114 feet of 1-¼” HPDE service lateral connections will be installed, including curb shut off valve and box, mainline corporation stop and check valve, 13 air release/vacuum valves in utility maintenance holes, 22 flushing/cleanout connections and 1 discharge connection. This project will eliminate approximately 17 small flow treatment systems, some of which are suspected of failure. - Central Indiana County Joint Sanitary Authority received a $2,000,000 loan for upgrades to the operating equipment at the Homer City Sewage Treatment Plant.
Screen removal equipment will be upgraded to include 2 dual auger systems, discharge chute, above grade discharge, heat trace and blanket, weatherproof controls, 2 Sanitaire decanters, local control boxes, VFD’s, level transducers, storm floats, SBR System control panel, 2 fine bubble aeration grids, air control valves, dissolved oxygen probes, waste sludge pumps, and the replacement of the pump impellers and motors with larger units to convey greater flow to the plant. The project will provide continued and reliable wastewater service to the community and allow for regulatory compliance. - Elizabethtown Borough received a $9,898,000 loan for improvements to the Radio Road Interceptor. The project will include the replacement of approximately 11,400 feet of deteriorated, hydraulically limited, sewer main from Radio Road to its connection with the Conoy Interceptor. This project will reduce inflow and infiltration throughout the sewer collection system and provide adequate hydraulic capacity for existing and future flows.
- The City of Philadelphia received a $37,070,670 loan to install a new channel air mixing system that has reached the end of useful life. The project includes replacement and installation of a new channel air mixing system with blowers, piping, valves, channel air diffuser assemblies, instrumentation, and controls, and new HVAC, and electrical systems within the existing compressor building.
This project will correct leakage issues, increase hydraulic capacity of the channels, decrease operations and maintenance requirements for channel cleaning and eliminate the potential for odor emissions. - Shinglehouse Borough received a $9,496,807 grant and a $5,995,193 loan to update the treatment plant’s aging equipment that has reached the end of useful life. This project is Phase II of a larger project and will include the construction of a new headworks building to house screening equipment that was installed in Phase I as well as a new mechanically induced vortex tank type grit removal system.
During Phase I, two new dry-pit submersible pumps were installed, and during Phase II, wastewater will now be conveyed to the new grit removal system within the headworks building. Chemical addition, biological treatment, disinfection, aerobic digestion, and final clarification processes will also be upgraded during this phase. This project will ensure the system is capable of meeting current effluent limitations. - Wellsboro Municipal Authority received a $1,024,000 grant and a $108,100 loan to replace their current Chlorine Gas Disinfection System with a new Ultraviolet Disinfection System.
This project will bring the Authority into compliance with the new NPDES permit chlorine concentration discharge levels. This conversion would also improve the safety of employees, the community, and Marsh Creek by reducing the potential for chlorine leaks. - French Creek Township received a $3,193,890 grant and a $1,594,689 loan to update the aging wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) process units and equipment.
The treatment plant project will include the relocation of the treatment units to a new site adjacent to the existing WWTP on the same tract of land, the construction of a 0.450 MGD Treatment Plant, construction of a new headworks facility with two band screens, 1 main channel and 1 bypass channel, influent flow metering, influent flow sampling equipment and the necessary control equipment.
Also included in the project is the construction of 2 new aerobic digesters, digester control and equipment building, the replacement of the trickling filter process with a three-tank, sequencing batch reactor process with control building and two-channel ultraviolet effluent disinfection systems, a new emergency generator, and the installation of a reed bed.
This project will allow the plant to continue to meet DEP standards, improve plant efficiency and effluent quality, allow for an uninterrupted treatment process during a power failure, eliminate the risk of damage and process failure in the event of a flood, and eliminate the loss of methane and other gaseous pollutants into the atmosphere. - Polk Borough received a $1,584,704 grant and a $791,232 loan to provide a capital contribution toward the new wastewater treatment facility project taking place in French Creek Township. This wastewater treatment plant provides service to the community of Polk Borough.
This project will allow the plant to continue to meet DEP standards, improve plant efficiency and effluent quality, allow for an uninterrupted treatment process during a power failure, eliminate the risk of damage and process failure in the event of a flood, and eliminate the loss of methane and other gaseous pollutants into the atmosphere. - Kiski Vallely Water Pollution Control Authority received a $2,205,000 loan to improve the processing capabilities of the treatment facility through the conversion of 2 existing concrete holding tanks into digester tanks and the replacement of the existing bed filter press.
The digester conversion consists of installing an Enviromix Biocycle-D System consisting of air header supply piping, nozzle headers, nozzles, an air compressor and header, positive displacement blower, aeration piping and fine bubble diffusers and a control system including monitoring probes and control panel. These improvements will increase the efficiency of the sludge digestion process and reduce sludge processing costs by an estimated $50,000 annually.
