November 2015
November 17 - Caring for your Lab Instruments, QA/QC, and Control
Charting - 6 - Northeast Harbor - JETCC
November 18 - Nitrogen Removal Compliance strategies for Small
Communities - 6 credit hours - Sturbridge, MA - NEWEA
November 18 - Pump System Optimization for WW & DW Facilities
- 6 credit hours - Portland, ME - JETCC
November 19 - Pump System Optimization for WW & DW Facilities
- 6 credit hours - Bangor, ME - JETCC
December 1 - Creating O&M Manuals and SOPs - 6 credit hours -
Waterville, ME - JETCC
December 3 - Mechanical Power Transmission Basics - 6 credit hours
- Augusta, ME - JETCC
December 8 - Managing Fats, Oils, and Grease in the WWCS - 6
credit hours - Scarborough, ME - JETCC
December 8-10 - MRWA Annual Conference - varying credit hours - Bangor, ME - MRWA
December 17 - Basic Blueprint Reading - 6 credit hours -
Kennebunkport, ME - JETCC
January 18 - Nutrient Removal Conference - 6 credit hours - Sturbridge, MA NEWEA
January 24-27 - NEWEA 2016 Annual Conference & Exhibit - varying credit hours - Boston, MA - NEWEA
February 8-10 - MWUA Annual Conference, Portland, ME - MWUA
The Maine Department of Environmental
Protection is housing a new Climate
Adaptation Toolkit on its website. This new resource is a Maine-focused, online reference
library that provides community leaders with links to key state, federal, and
other climate related documents, climate models, data sources, and technical
providers, to assist with the work being done throughout the state. Town
leaders, engaged citizens, businesses, universities, and state partners are
planning and implementing changes into their communities to adapt to climate
change, and by doing so building resilience into their communities.
The Adaptation Toolkit is for anyone
who is interested in learning about climate change in Maine, or accessing
information that will help integrate best practices into their community, home,
or place of work to make them more resilient to changes in our climate.
DEP’s goal is to continue to improve
the utility of this toolkit by updating the guidance materials, and engaging
with toolkit users directly, to ensure they are getting the key information
needed.
For more information, please visit Maine Department of
Environmental Protection’s Climate Change webpage at: http://www.maine.gov/dep/sustainability/climate/index.html
And, the Maine Climate Adaptation
Toolkit at: http://www.maine.gov/dep/sustainability/climate/adaptation-toolkit/index.html
Contact: Nathan Robbins, Climate Change Specialist,
nathan.p.robbins@maine.gov or (207) 592-6590.
1. What is the ideal nutrient ratio for biological stabilization of organic matter for Carbon/Nitrogen/Phosphorus (C/N/P) if there are 100 parts of Carbon?
2. Name four(4) possible causes of filamentous sludge bulking in activated sludge plants.
3. What is the surface loading or hydraulic loading rate on a primary clarifier 75 feet in diameter, 10 feet deep, with an influent flow of 1.5 MGD?
4. The influent flow to a 2 MGD extended aeration plant is 1.3 MGD, the influent BOD is 169 mg/L. What is the organic loading on the facility in lbs. of BOD per 1,000 ft3. ?
5 A community has a population of 1900 people. They are served by a 0.25 MGD oxidation ditch. What is the organic loading on this facility in lbs. of BOD per 1, 000 ft3? Assume 0.17 lbs. BOD per person/day.
6. What is a desired DO level in an activated sludge plant?
a. 4-6 mg/L
b. 0-2 mg/L
c. 3-10 mg/L
d. 2-5 mg/L
7. What is the wavelength that will render bacteria unable to reproduce in a UV system.
a. 254 nm
b. 254 in
c. 524 nm
d. 524 mm
8. In aerobic digestion the "endogenous respiration" phase means what in terms of sludge production quantity?
a. Sludge volume increases
b. Sludge volume decreases
c. Sludge volume remains stable
d. Sludge becomes septic
Use of Treatment Plant Effluent for Washing Operations
It is common practice for wastewater treatment plants to use
treated effluent –often called “plant water” to wash down equipment and knock down
foam. Treated effluent is generally
considered to be good for those applications and usually costs much less than
potable water options.
However, plant water is not potable water, and should never
make its way outside the treatment plant system. Plant water is prohibited from being
discharged onto the ground, into a storm water basin or into nearby surface
water. This is considered to be an
unlicensed discharge by the Department because it is being discharged to a
point other than the permitted outfall location that is in your permit (see
Special Conditions, “Authorized Discharges”).
Discharge of plant water in this way is considered an “incident” that has
to be reported to the Department within 24 hours of the discharge event. Additionally, within five days of the discharge
event, a follow-up letter must be sent explaining the issue, the cause, and the
corrective actions.
Exceptions are if the plant water is discharged on impervious
pavement into a drain that is directed back to the treatment plant for
processing, such as may exist in areas with composting or sludge
storage operations.
In a nutshell, if wastewater in any form is discharged from a
non-permitted point then that discharge is required to be reported to the
Department. Please be sure that any
outside washing that has a probable chance to discharge to the ground water or
surface water is not conducted with treated effluent.
If you have questions or need clarification, then please
contact your compliance inspector!
Matthew Young, DEP
Answers:
1. Carbon/Nitrogen/Phosphorus (C/N/P) = 100/5/1
2. Low dissolved oxygen (DO), Low F/M, Low pH, Septic wastewater, Toxicity, Grease.
3. Hydraulic Loading Rate (gal/day/ft2) =
Design Flow (gal/day) / Area (ft2)
Area = 0.785 X diameter2 = 4,415.62 ft2
1,500,000 GPD / 4,415.62 ft2 = 339.7 GPD/ ft2
4. When calculating the organic loading for an activated sludge plant use the following
equation:
lbs of BOD influent / volume of the aeration basin in 1,000 ft3
lbs of BOD influent = 1.3 MGD X 8.34 X 169 mg/L = 1,832.29 lbs BOD
Aeration tank Volume in ft3 = 2,000,000 gal ÷ 7.48 gal/ft3 ÷ 1,000 = 267.379 / 1,000 ft3
=1,832.29 lbs BOD /{ 267.379 / 1,000 ft3} = 6.85 lbs BOD/ 1,000 ft3
5. lbs BOD = 1,900 people X 0.17 lbs BOD person/day = 323 lbs BOD/day
250,000 gallons / 7.48 gallons/ft3 ÷ 1,000 = 33.422 / 1,000 ft3
323 lbs BOD /{ 33.422 lbs BOD / 1,000 ft3} = 9.66 lbs BOD/1,000 ft3
6. d. 2-5 mg/L
7. a. 254 nm
Ultraviolet light is electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths shorter than visible light. UV can be separated into various ranges, with short range UV (UVC) considered "germicidal UV". At certain wavelengths UV is mutagenic to bacteria, viruses and other micro-organisms. At a wavelength 254 nm UV will render them unable to reproduce.
8. b. Sludge volume decreases. Bacteria are feeding on themselves and on the dead and dying bacteria, thereby reducing the sludge volume
Don’t let the winter get you down. There are plenty of upcoming Water &
Wastewater conferences where you can network, learn about new technologies, and
earn Training Contact Hours (TCHs) to boot.
Maine Rural Water Association (MWRA) will hold its 35th
Annual Technical Conference and Tradeshow December 8-10 at the Cross Insurance
Center in Bangor. The conference, "Making Connections Count" features 31
concurrent sessions, 60 vendor booths, and choice of sessions that total up to 49 training hours. Visit the MRWA website at www.mainerwa.org for more info.
New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA) will hold
its 2016 Annual Conference & Exhibit on January 24-27 at the Boston
Marriott Hotel at Copley Place. The
conference has been called New England’s premier water quality conference and
consistently attracts over 2000 engineers, consultants, scientists, operators
and student. Hopefully this year’s
conference will not attract a blizzard.
For more info, go to www.newea.org.
Maine Water Utility Association (MWUA) is
holding its 90th Annual February Meeting and Trade Show on February 8-10 at the
Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland. Once
again, the conference will be co-sponsored by New England Water Works
Association (NEWWA) and Maine Water Environment Association (MEWEA). This year’s conference will feature New
Product Technology sessions on the trade show floor, classes to appeal to
operators, managers and office personnel alike, as well as tours of Portland’s
Water and Wastewater Treatment Facilities. Look for registration to open in the
coming weeks at www.mwua.org.
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