Batesburg-Leesville wastewater plant named SC Rural Water Association Wastewater System of the Year

The Batesburg-Leesville Town Council recognized the town’s wastewater treatment plant and Superintendent Angie Atkins for receiving the Wastewater System of the Year award from the South Carolina Rural Water Association at the association’s Nov. 20, 2024 conference.

Angie Atkins thanked council for the recognition and outlined recent and planned upgrades. She said the plant is currently rated to treat 2,500,000 gallons per day and staff recently completed a liquid chemical feed installation to replace an older gas chlorination system. The plant has a new SCADA system to allow remote operations, an updated sludge-dewatering system (replacing a centrifuge with a rotary press), and plans to reconfigure return-activated-sludge pumps (moving from a single pump to a three-pump arrangement split from the clarifiers). Additional planned work includes headworks upgrades with new bar screening and grit removal and a project intended to double the plant’s processing capacity. Atkins and council highlighted the small but certified staff: a chief operator and three certified operators (four main operators total).

Council members praised staff for efficiency and encouraged councilors to visit the plant. The recognition and the capital improvements presented are aimed at improving treatment reliability and regulatory compliance as the town’s wastewater flows and operations evolve.

Next steps: staff will continue design and implementation work; council will be kept apprised of capital costs and schedules through staff reports and the budget process.