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Consultant outlines NITREX technology, costs and district model for Falmouth wastewater
Summary
Pia/Pio Lombardo presented the NITREX nitrogen‑removal system and recommended exploring on‑site wastewater management districts and bulk construction to reduce per‑household costs; equipment costs were estimated at roughly $21,900–$24,000 with installation varying widely by site.
Pia/Pio Lombardo of Lombardo Associates presented options for meeting Falmouth’s nitrogen‑reduction requirements, including the NITREX recirculating media filter system, cluster systems, permeable reactive barriers (PRBs) and the concept of an on‑site wastewater management district.
Lombardo said his firm is not "hawking equipment" but offered technical experience and examples from other municipalities. He described the NITREX approach as a low‑energy recirculating media filter with a wood‑chip denitrification reactor and said his installations have often achieved effluent total nitrogen levels near or under 3 milligrams per liter in regular operations. He also noted that DEP’s published list of available technologies typically lists a 10 mg/L certification threshold, and added that general use approval (DEP’s general approval requires a data base of installations) remains a hurdle for newer systems.
On costs, Lombardo said equipment for a typical three‑bedroom house is about $21,900–$24,000, with site‑specific installation costs ranging widely (committee discussion gave a working range of roughly $15,000–$50,000). He estimated electricity for the systems at about $50 per year; sampling and lab costs for provisional systems (quarterly sampling) could push annual O&M near $1,950 per year, while annual sampling under general approval could be about $850 per year. Lombardo suggested district‑level statistical sampling and bundling construction to reduce per‑household O&M and construction costs.
Members and residents asked how quickly a property owner could get hardware after permitting; Lombardo said that, for a single unit, delivery and assembly can be fast if components are in inventory and that his firm assembles units and maintains relationships with local yards/contractors. Town residents raised questions about phosphorus removal (ponds) and whether NITREX addresses that pollutant; Lombardo said NITREX is primarily a nitrogen‑removal technology and that phosphorus requires different treatment approaches.
The committee did not take action on technology procurement at the meeting but discussed next steps including outreach to local engineers and the Board of Health, further mapping of where advanced systems would be needed, and consideration of district or cluster approaches to reduce costs and ease operations.
