Des Moines WRA manager outlines how CSSF handles downtown sewer flows

Tim Bundy, treatment manager at the Des Moines WRA, described operations at the agency's combined sewer solid separation facility, saying it handles "all the combined sewer flows from the downtown Des Moines area." Bundy explained the steps operators take when downtown flows increase and how the system is kept ready for storms.

"When our operators see an increase of flows in downtown Des Moines, they will turn on our system by opening a gate and then closing a different gate," Bundy said. He added that activating those gates starts the bar screens and pumps inside the building, which then move water into an on-site tank where staff manage and route the flows.

Bundy said that once pumps are running the facility can either direct flows back to the treatment plant or, after passing through primary treatment, release them to the river. He emphasized the CSSF is staffed around the clock and that staff take "extra precaution" to make sure the facility is up and running "before the storm gets here," noting a preference to be "preemptive" and ready at a moment's notice.

The presentation provided a brief, operational overview of how the Des Moines WRA activates and uses the CSSF to manage increased combined-sewer flows during storm events. No formal actions or policy changes were announced.