Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Water Treatment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council approves CDM Smith design contract for water‑treatment expansion and PFAS removal
Summary
Fernley council approved a contract to design expansion of the city’s water treatment plant to treat Truckee Canal surface water, increase capacity and add PFAS treatment; consultants will run a treatability study to compare media options and help estimate lifecycle operating costs.
Fernley — The City Council voted 4–0 to hire CDM Smith to design modifications to the existing water treatment plant that will allow the utility to treat Truckee Canal surface water, expand capacity and add equipment for PFAS removal.
Utilities Director Azza Hinkie said the City’s treatment plant was built to treat groundwater and remove arsenic; recent sampling shows PFAS above regulatory limits in several municipal wells and traces in surface water. CDM Smith representatives told council the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed maximum contaminant levels for PFOA and PFOS of 4 parts per trillion and the original compliance deadline was 2029 (an EPA draft rule discussed an extension). Servando Molina of CDM Smith outlined major project elements including surface-water pumping modifications, flocculation/sedimentation basins for particle removal, solids‑handling and drying basins, a PFAS treatment building (examples shown: large vessels with granular activated carbon), and a third treated-water storage tank for operational flexibility.
CDM Smith said the first step in design will be a treatability study to evaluate media life and performance and to compare granular activated carbon with ion-exchange technologies, so the city can choose the most cost‑effective, operable system and estimate lifecycle replacement frequency and disposal pathways. The firm presented a preliminary delivery schedule that would start design work soon, with a construction bid set estimated between March 2027 and July 2028.
Funding and timing: Staff noted the city has applied for a $2 million EPA grant and is exploring State Revolving Fund and other low-cost loan options for construction. The consultant cautioned that quoted contract amounts on the agenda appeared to be transcribed incorrectly and said the contract value and funding details would be finalized in staff reports and the posted contract documents.
Councilors asked several technical questions about blending surface and groundwater, taste/odor treatment, high dissolved solids and the frequency and costs of carbon media replacement; CDM Smith said those operating decisions will be informed by the treatability study and lifecycle-cost analysis.
What’s next: CDM Smith will begin the treatability work and preliminary design, then return with a detailed design and construction schedule for council review. The council approved the contract and authorized staff to move into design.
