Operations update: dryer performance improves after polymer change
Summary
Staff reported the wastewater dryer, previously underperforming, improved dramatically after changing polymer/hose configuration; the dryer approached or exceeded its 800 lb/hour design capacity and may avoid lengthy litigation or landfill disposal of 20% dry product.
Public works staff gave a positive update on the wastewater dryer that had struggled to reach target throughput. Staff said that after experimenting with polymer types and a simple hose change, the dryer progressed from roughly 400 lb/hour to near—and in some tests above—its design rate of 800 lb/hour. “The dryer is designed to produce 800 lb of dry product per hour. We weren't getting 400 up until two weeks ago and now they had it near 900 pounds,” staff reported, describing tests and adjustments that appear to have resolved the prior performance problems.
Staff cautioned there may be cost overruns tied to 2026 remediation work but said the dryer now produces acceptable dried sludge and the operations team will continue fine-tuning. The board received the operational update and expressed relief that a straightforward operational change appears to have fixed a longstanding problem that had threatened to require costly legal action or landfill disposal of partially dried material.
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