Treatment Plant Project Approved

The City Council has agreed to move ahead with the $27-million third phase of the expansion of the Hill Canyon Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The council voted 3 to 0 Tuesday, with Mayor Linda Parks abstaining and Councilman Michael Markey absent, to certify that environmental impacts of the project were acceptable and to seek bids.

Construction could begin late this year or early next year. The project, the third phase of a four-part, $70-million expansion, should take about two years to complete.

Planning for the expansion program began in 1987 as an effort to comply with water reclamation, water pollution and flood control requirements.

No impact on residential service is expected. The project should improve plant operations, reduce odors, increase the plant’s ability to handle overflows into the system during heavy rains and increase overall capacity to meet the needs of a growing community.

When the plant was built in the 1960s it was able to process 6 million gallons of sewage a day. Over the years, plant operations have been expanded to its current capacity of 12 million gallons a day.

The average daily sewage flow is about 10.5 million gallons, but during peak periods when rainwater leaks into the system, those flows can increase to between 20 million and 30 million gallons.

This latest expansion project is expected to be the last, increasing the plant’s sewage treatment capacity to 14 million gallons a day, said Demosthenes Morales, senior civil engineer for the city.