Construction continues on the Lewis Wastewater Treatment Plant! A closer look shows Dutchland setting the precast concrete panels to construct the wastewater treatment plant. They have since been gasketed, grouted, and passed the watertight integrity test.
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Did you catch us at the PWEA/PennTec Conference in June?
Bassett Engineering teamed up with Lackawanna River Basin Sewer Authority to give a presentation on the Throop Digester Upgrade and Expansion for Cogeneration project we completed in 2019.
We also enjoyed PWEA’s tour of the Derry Township Municipal Authority Clearwater Wastewater Treatment Plant. The Tour focused on the Energy Enhancements Project where we assisted Brown and Caldwell. We obtained all environmental permits and Land Development Plan approvals, plus provided the site design including stormwater management and yard piping.
Lackawanna River Basin Sewer Authority (LRBSA) received and opened bids for it its Aeration Pipeline Replacement at the Throop Wastewater Treatment Plant project, in early March. LRBSA received a total of nine bids and eventually awarded the contract to JEV Construction for a total project cost of $421,000. The project is scheduled to begin in the near future and is tentatively scheduled for completion in August.
Bassett Engineering was hired by the Authority to design the replacement of the existing process aeration pipe at the WWTP which has historically suffered leaks leading to increased operational costs and decreased efficiency at the plant; the aerated process tanks in particular. The new aeration pipeline uses corrosion resistant materials and is designed to last much longer than its traditional ductile iron predecessor and will offer sustainable improvement in years to come for the Authority. Bassett Engineering looks forward to the continuation of the project and the successful installation of the design.
February was a busy month for Altoona Water Authority’s Altoona Westerly Treatment Plant Biosolids Improvement project. On February 4th 2021, AWA closed and finalized the 36.6-Million Dollar PennVest loan prepared by Bassett Engineering for the Authority. This loan is to be used to fund the initial capital construction costs of the Guaranteed Energy Savings Agreement (GESA) entered into with Energy Systems Group (ESG). The project aims to generate revenue by the acceptance of local high-strength waste, biogas generation/utilization, and increased biosolids quality due volume reduction and drying, all of which will offset costs throughout the life of the loan and well beyond.
Construction of the project started prior to full closing on the loan with PennVest approval, and has progressed rapidly. Upon receiving notice to proceed from the Altoona Water Authority, Energy Systems Group mobilized on site and started construction in September 2020. All subcontracts were executed for subcontractors and all major equipment is on order. The existing old abandoned in place concrete process tanks were demolished and backfilled. By late November both foundations for the anaerobic digesters were completed. Digester tank panels were erected in late January along with completion of the Digester control building foundation rebar work. Current work on the Digesters is paused as part of a winter shutdown by the subcontractor, but will begin again in the spring.
https://bassetteng.com/funding-assistance/
PennVEST awarded $36,620,000 in low-interest loan funding to the Altoona Water Authority for the Biosolids Treatment Improvements at the Westerly Wastewater Treatment Facility. This was PennVEST’s first funding award to a Guaranteed Energy Savings (GESA) Project in its 30+ year program history. Energy Services Group (ESG) is constructing this GESA project under a Design-Build Agreement with Altoona Water Authority (AWA), and Bassett Engineering is providing engineering services including permitting and funding assistance to ESG. Britt Bassett worked closely with AWA’s Controller and Director of Wastewater Operations along with ESG on all aspects of the PENNVEST application from initial submission through the review process and final award. This is a critical step in the project timeline.
BE offers funding assistance of all sizes, project types, and varieties. We look forward to helping you secure the funding you need to make your project become reality. Check out our funding assistance page in the link below to see what other projects we have help fund.
https://bassetteng.com/funding-assistance/
Bassett Engineering was fortunate enough to be able to work with Lackawanna River Basin Sewer Authority to replace the covers on two 65-foot diameter anaerobic sludge digesters at their wastewater treatment facility in Throop. Digester gas powers two microturbine cogeneration units that generate electricity to reduce Throop’s power consumption. We just closed out the project and here are some key features:
More project details can be viewed at the link below:
https://bassetteng.com/nutrient-removal/throop-wwtp-digester-cover-replacement/
Reactor Blower Pipe Replacement
Bassett Engineering is also currently designing the replacement of the main blower pipe supplying air to the biological nutrient removal process. Replacing this pipe will require careful construction sequencing to maintain continuous treatment.
The projects are part of coordinated efforts between the Authority and Bassett Engineering to optimize the performance of the 10.0 mgd plant, which Bassett also assisted in upgrading to its current BNR treatment level in 2009.
Bassett Engineering has been fortunate to be a consultant to Energy Systems Group (ESG) tasked with securing all necessary permits for the Altoona Westerly Wastewater Treatment Plant Biosolids Treatment Improvements project. This included DEP Chapter 102, Chapter 105, Water Quality Management, and Air Quality Management permits as well as Municipal Permits for Land Development and Stormwater Management. DEP recently approved the last outstanding permit, the Air Quality Management Plan Approval, meaning the project can move forward into construction. ESG is operating under a Guaranteed Energy Savings Contract (GESC) to offer a full turnkey design-build Waste-To-Energy solution for the Altoona Water Authority. The project includes the installation of two new anaerobic digesters which will produce biogas that will be beneficially reused to fuel new biosolids volume reduction equipment and new/existing heating boilers. This will reduce Westerly’s reliance of energy produced by fossil fuels and other non-renewable resources.
Under the GESC terms and PA Guaranteed Energy Systems Agreement (GESA) law, the project is providing both revenue and savings guarantees associated with the performance of installed equipment over a 20 year term.
Bassett has expertise in nearly all facets of civil and environmental engineering. Check out our offered services and see how we might be able to help you.
Bassett Engineering was founded with wastewater as one of the cornerstones of our business and it remains that way today. Given our expertise in process design, BE works on industry-leading projects with some of the largest firms and manufacturers in the business. Recently, Bassett Engineering has worked on waste to energy projects as well as traditional process engineering plant design, and Act 537 planning. Contact us to talk about our experienced staff for your wastewater solution.
Bassett Engineering’s practice is focused on wastewater treatment in general. Britt Bassett, PE, BCEE, is a Board Certified Environmental Engineer by the American Academy of Environmental Engineers. Only 2,500 Environmental Engineers in the US have earned this mark of distinction as leaders in their area of practice. Mr. Bassett also helped write three WEF Manuals of Practice including Nutrient Removal (two editions), Design of Municipal WWTPs, and Process Modeling.
Mr. Bassett began designing small wastewater systems 29 years ago in 1989 in Maryland, including an on-lot disposal system with a design flow of 5,000 gallons per day for Rising Sun Elementary School. Since the company’s inception in 1996, Bassett Engineering has dozens of small wastewater systems in operation, and now specializes in large treatment plants as well. We have designed many miles of wastewater collectors and force mains, numerous pump stations, and multiple treatment plants. Some representative projects include the following.
|
Treatment Plant |
Flow |
Status |
Nutrient Removal |
| Altoona Westerly WWTP | 10.8 MGD | Operating | ✓ |
| LRBSA Throop WWTP | 10.0 MGD | Operating | |
| Altoona Easterly WWTP | 9.0 MGD | Operating | ✓ |
| Moshannon Valley WWTP | 9.0 MGD | Design Complete | |
| LRBSA Archbald WWTP | 6.0 MGD | Operating | ✓ |
| Clearfield MA WWTF | 4.5 MGD | Operating | ✓ |
| Gregg Twp MA WWTP | 1.4 MGD | Operating | ✓ |
| Mid-Shore Leachate TF | —— | Feasibility Study Complete | ✓ |
| Tri-County WWTF | —– | Feasibility Study Complete | ✓ |
| Small Wastewater System | Flow | No. of EDU’s | Nutrient Removal |
| Millville Borough | 300,000 gpd | 1200 | ✓ |
| New Berlin Borough | 200,000 gpd | 800 | ✓ |
| Delaware Township | 100,000 gpd | 400 | |
| Liberty Area | 75,000 gpd | 300 | |
| Nelson Township Authority | 50,000 gpd | 200 | ✓ |
| Brady Township Northwest | 30,000 gpd | 120 | ✓ |
| Sonestown Davidson Township | 24,000 gpd | 96 | ✓ |
| Brady Township Southeast | 8,000 gpd | 32 |
Collector Extensions: Old Lycoming Township Fox Hollow