Board approves study of wastewater dewatering options and gives permission to bid McClung lift station replacement

City wastewater staff told the board that the city has lost previous land-application sites used to dispose of wastewater solids and that the city needs alternatives. Jerry Jackson described a proposal from Wessler Engineering for a preliminary engineering study to evaluate dewatering technologies, siting, construction and operating costs and disposal alternatives; the board approved the study.

Jackson said the city currently handles roughly 1.6 million gallons a year of wastewater solids in liquid form and that dewatering would shrink that volume substantially. “You can probably do that in 10 truckloads if you’ve dewatered,” he said, contrasting the current tanker-truck approach. He warned that regulatory trends around PFAS and changing land access make long-term reliance on land application uncertain and argued the study would identify viable options.

In a related item, Jackson asked for permission to solicit bids to replace the McClung Road lift station — a can-style station built in the late 1960s that requires confined-space entries and is reaching the end of its useful life. He said the replacement is included in the capital budget and is estimated at about $500,000; the board approved permission to bid.

Board members discussed disposal options, the potential for regional solutions and the costs of dewatering and possible incineration. Jackson noted some neighboring cities already dewater and that an incineration option would be expensive and likely regional in scope. The board approved both the Wessler preliminary engineering proposal and permission to bid the McClung lift station.