MERIDIAN, Idaho — What the flush?! Meridian's Wastewater Resource Recovery Facility will soon see upgrades when it comes to processing wastewater into biosolids.
"Two of our largest projects are at our wastewater treatment plant as they are looking for additional ways to reuse some of the gas that is being produced in the facility by recycling it and turning it into energy, as well as biosolids dryer program. In fact, the project for biosolids could reduce trips to the landfill by almost half, reducing transportation and disposal fees."
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
"Using a greenhouse with heated floor plates is a new thing. It's [will be] the first installation in Idaho," said Laurelei McVey, Public Works Director in Meridian.
Upgrades are on the way to this Meridian facility where the city's wastewater is treated.
The goal is to become more environmentally-friendly and save money to invest back into the community.
"So what you see is the biosolids coming off of our centrifuge, which is a way to reduce some of the moisture in the biosolids," said McVey. "So they're really rich in nutrients, ammonia, phosphorus, nitrogen, and carbon.”
Those biosolids are then transported to the local landfill, each trip and drop-off costing the city money.
So, they found a way to reduce that costly fuel use by improving the way biosolids are dried, and how they can get the most use out of each flush.
"Additionally, a really cool aspect of the project is that we are using our bio-gas, which is a natural byproduct of our digestion process. Today we just flare that gas off to the atmosphere, but this will beneficially reuse that gas to heat the drier," said McVey.
The local landfill's life is also extended with every trip avoided.
"We could use them for something like composting or farming — if that was something that was beneficial to the city at that point," said McVey.
The Biosolids Project, with the heated greenhouse, will cost around $7.4 million, funded through a portion of the city's American Rescue Plan Act grant.
