City of Lexington to Receive $28M State Support for Wastewater Upgrades
The City of Lexington is proud to announce a $27.9M State investment from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. The City welcomed Governor Cooper and Secretary Biser of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality to the Lexington Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (LRWWTP) for a tour of the compost facility and announce $462.9 million in clean water and wastewater infrastructure funding across the state.
“As the regional utility service provider, we are grateful for the State’s support of our wastewater treatment facility. These grant funds will allow us to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of our infrastructure, safeguard environmental health, and support continued economic development growth in the central part of North Carolina,” stated Tom Johnson, Water Resources Utility Director.
The Lexington Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (LRWWTP) was originally constructed in 1983, with additions and upgrades in 1988 and 2002. With 225 miles of wastewater lines, the treatment plant services 7,396 residential customers and 1,413 commercial/industrial customer across Lexington and Davidson County. This plant serves as the regional provider.
During the wastewater treatment process, the solids that are concentrated and removed from the waste stream go through the solids handling process for further treatment and disposal. The existing solids handling process at LRWWTP includes dissolved air flotation (DAF) thickening, sludge dewatering with a single belt filter press (BFP), and composting. There is no biological digestion at the facility. Operations staff report the thickening process of the sludge requires significant operation time to achieve desired results and significant hours to resolve periodic maintenance issues with the equipment. Frequent failures, difficulty in finding parts for equipment, and equipment that is no longer supported by any manufacturer cause extended downtime which leads to permit violations as solids removal from the plant falls behind. An assessment by CDM Engineering in March 2021 validated staff concerns and recommended LRWWTP replace and refurbish components in the solids handling process.
The Solids Handling Improvements Project will replace existing solids handling equipment and provide resiliency in the LRWWTP infrastructure to ensure reliable service and sustain economic growth in the region. This $27.9 million project will establish a new dewatering building with a two three-belt filter presses (BFPs), new polymer feed equipment, wet cake bins, and associated piping for all systems, including the relocation of non-potable water piping currently within the 100-year flood plain. It will also include construction of a new building that will house thermal dryer equipment and sludge pumps, including biosolids silos. Thermal drying will replace composting to maintain Class A biosolids production at the LRWWTP.
City Manager Terra Greene thanked the Governor and State for their support saying, “This $28M State investment enables us to expedite much-needed replacement of aging wastewater infrastructure with cutting-edge technology that that residents, industries, and businesses rely upon to support their daily lives.”
Mayor Hayes echoed his appreciation, recognizing that Governor Cooper’s visit to Lexington truly highlights that “Lexington’s Wastewater Treatment Plant is a regional utility that is key to the economic growth of our city and our county.”
These upgrades to our wastewater treatment facility will further enhance and improve the resiliency and sustainability of the infrastructure, ensuring high quality service that Lexington Utilities provides the community as a regional utility service provider. Additionally, it will safeguard environmental health and support continued economic development growth across the region.
The City of Lexington is very appreciative of the State’s support of these upgrades and their continued effort to ensure access to clean water across North Carolina.
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The City of Lexington is proud to announce a $27.9M State investment from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. The City welcomed Governor Cooper and Secretary Biser of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality to the Lexington Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (LRWWTP) for a tour of the compost facility and announce $462.9 million in clean water and wastewater infrastructure funding across the state.
“As the regional utility service provider, we are grateful for the State’s support of our wastewater treatment facility. These grant funds will allow us to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of our infrastructure, safeguard environmental health, and support continued economic development growth in the central part of North Carolina,” stated Tom Johnson, Water Resources Utility Director.
The Lexington Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (LRWWTP) was originally constructed in 1983, with additions and upgrades in 1988 and 2002. With 225 miles of wastewater lines, the treatment plant services 7,396 residential customers and 1,413 commercial/industrial customer across Lexington and Davidson County. This plant serves as the regional provider.
During the wastewater treatment process, the solids that are concentrated and removed from the waste stream go through the solids handling process for further treatment and disposal. The existing solids handling process at LRWWTP includes dissolved air flotation (DAF) thickening, sludge dewatering with a single belt filter press (BFP), and composting. There is no biological digestion at the facility. Operations staff report the thickening process of the sludge requires significant operation time to achieve desired results and significant hours to resolve periodic maintenance issues with the equipment. Frequent failures, difficulty in finding parts for equipment, and equipment that is no longer supported by any manufacturer cause extended downtime which leads to permit violations as solids removal from the plant falls behind. An assessment by CDM Engineering in March 2021 validated staff concerns and recommended LRWWTP replace and refurbish components in the solids handling process.
The Solids Handling Improvements Project will replace existing solids handling equipment and provide resiliency in the LRWWTP infrastructure to ensure reliable service and sustain economic growth in the region. This $27.9 million project will establish a new dewatering building with a two three-belt filter presses (BFPs), new polymer feed equipment, wet cake bins, and associated piping for all systems, including the relocation of non-potable water piping currently within the 100-year flood plain. It will also include construction of a new building that will house thermal dryer equipment and sludge pumps, including biosolids silos. Thermal drying will replace composting to maintain Class A biosolids production at the LRWWTP.
City Manager Terra Greene thanked the Governor and State for their support saying, “This $28M State investment enables us to expedite much-needed replacement of aging wastewater infrastructure with cutting-edge technology that that residents, industries, and businesses rely upon to support their daily lives.”
Mayor Hayes echoed his appreciation, recognizing that Governor Cooper’s visit to Lexington truly highlights that “Lexington’s Wastewater Treatment Plant is a regional utility that is key to the economic growth of our city and our county.”
These upgrades to our wastewater treatment facility will further enhance and improve the resiliency and sustainability of the infrastructure, ensuring high quality service that Lexington Utilities provides the community as a regional utility service provider. Additionally, it will safeguard environmental health and support continued economic development growth across the region.
The City of Lexington is very appreciative of the State’s support of these upgrades and their continued effort to ensure access to clean water across North Carolina.
