April 2019
April 2 - JETCC - Physical/Chemical Treatment Process, Brunswick, DEP 6 TCH
April 2, 4, 9, & 11 - MRWA - Class III & IV Treatment Certification exam Preparatory Course (4 Day Course), Standish, DEP 10 TCH, BLWSO 20 TCH
April 3 - JETCC - Industrial Wastewater Compliance, Brunswick, DEP 6 TCH
April 10 - NEIWPCC - What You Need to Know About FOG, Portland, DEP 6 TCH
April 12 - NEWEA - Operations Challenge Training Day & Facility Tour, West Warwick, R.I., Variable TCH
April 16, 18, 23, & 25 - MRWA - Class III & IV Distribution Certification Exam Preparatory Course (4 Day Course), Standish, DEP 10 TCH, BLWSO 20 TCH
April 17 - MRWA - Opening for the Season, Wiscasset, BLWSO 3 TCH
April 23 - MRWA - Opening for the Season, Casco, BLWSO 3 TCH
April 24 & 25 - JETCC - 2019 North Country Convention, Presque Isle, DEP 12 TCH, BLWSO 12 TCH
April 25 - MRWA - Opening for the Season, Prospect, BLWSO 3 TCH
April 26 - MRWA - Opening for the Season, Bar Harbor, BLWSO 3 TCH
May 7 & 9 - MRWA - Intermediate/Advanced Math for Class III & IV Operators (2 Day Course), Standish, BLWSO 10 TCH
May 14 - JETCC - Rehabilitation & Replacement of Underground Piping, Fairfield, DEP 6 TCH
May 15 - JETCC - Instrumentation, Control Networks, and SCADA Review, Farmington, DEP 6 TCH, BLWSO 6 TCH
May 21 - NEIWPCC - O&M of Wastewater Collection Systems, Bangor, DEP 15 TCH
The questions below refer to an extended aeration plant. Use your answers from previous questions to solve all questions.
1. An Extended aeration plant has an average flow of 250,000 gpd and average BOD applied to the aeration basin of 230 mg/L. How many pounds of BOD are received, on average, per day?
a. 57.5 lb/day
b. 230 lb/day
c. 250 lb/day
d. 480 lb/day
2. The aeration basin is 50 ft long and 25 ft wide, with an average depth of 20 ft. What is the volume in gallons?
a. 9375 gal
b. 1250 gal
c. 25,000 gal
d. 187,000 gal
3. Using your answers from #1 and #2 above, what is the aeration detention time?
a. 18 hours
b. 18 days
c. 0.748 minutes
d. 250 day
4. If the MLVSS is 5000 mg/L, how many pounds of solids are in the aeration basin?
a. 935 lb
b. 9350 lb
c. 7800 lb
d. 187,000 lb
5. What is the F/M ratio for this plant?
a. 0.1625
b. 0.06
c. 0.16
d. 0.60
6. A cell residence time of 15 days is desired. Using the pounds of MLVSS found in problem #4 above, how many pounds of VSS must be wasted per day?
a. 15 lb
b. 250 lb
c. 520 lb
d. 7800 lb
7. Find the flow rate in GPD that must be pumped in order to waste the number of pounds calculated in Problem #6 given a return sludge concentration of 9000 mg/L VSS.
a. 0.25 gpd
b. 840 gpd
c. 900 gpd
d. 7,000 gpd
8. Calculate the wasting rate in gallons per minute if the wasting from problem #7 is done in 24 hours?
a. 4.8 gal/min
b. 15 gal/min
c. 292 gal/min
d. 935 gal/min
9. Calculate the wasting rate per minute (gal/min) if the wasting was done in 4 hours.
a. 4 gal/min
b. 19.2 gal/min
c. 30 gal/min
d. 1,750 min
Spring Preparations
Operators,
We’ll it’s that time of year again, time to celebrate the arrival of spring! And for those in the wastewater profession, spring comes with its’ challenges. Normally, everyone can count on some heightened flows and possibly some flooding of different degrees, but this season with record snowfalls and ice packs for a significant portion of the State, will likely be a more challenging spring than usual.
Now is the time to prepare for this type of an event by evaluating your readiness to handle the problems that can come with these spring conditions.
• Is your wet weather operations plan up to date?
• Does your plan address how to handle flooding of any portions of your facility, pump stations &/or plant?
• Do you have a plan for discontinuing use of equipment if impending flooding will inundate it?
• Have you test run any generator(s) under load conditions lately & do you have fuel for multi-day outage?
• If you suffer a major power outage, or some serious flooding, what are your plans for communicating?
• Are you prepared to handle the situation if an employee(s) can’t make it to work due to flooding?
• If you can’t access the plant or pump station(s), who will you reach out to for assistance?
These are questions better asked and addressed now, rather than being faced with them in a very stressful situation.
Please keep your inspector informed should you find yourself in the unenviable situation of dealing with any equipment failures and/or flooding conditions.
Thank you and wishing you all well with spring conditions.
Any questions, please call Sterling Pierce at (207) 287-4868 or email at sterling.pierce@maine.gov
EPA is delaying the start of the DMR-QA due to the government shutdown.
The DMR-QA announcement will come from EPA by general delivery email, so make sure to check your spam or junk folder in case it ends up there.
DEP will keep you posted on study dates as they are finalized by EPA.
Questions? Contact Judy Bruenjes at judy.k.bruenjes@maine.gov
Every few years Mother Nature really lays it down and we are faced with potential flooding in the spring and this year is one of those times!
This is the fifth year that the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) has offered funding for the development of Climate Adaptation Plans (CAP) to make publicly-owned wastewater treatment systems more resilient to current and future changes in our climate. So far, eleven of our 162 municipal wastewater treatment facilities have taken advantage of the offer through the CWSRF program. Not a big number, but an important start!
So, what is the offer? The offer comes in the form of a loan of up to $20,000 that is forgiven, therefore it is free money that never needs to be paid back! Great deal! It’s easy to apply for and there are no application or financing costs involved.
What is a CAP? A CAP identifies the hazards to your system associated with climate change, evaluates their impacts on critical assets and your vulnerability to them, identifies adaptation practices, and presents recommendations that build resiliency into the critical assets. This allows you to plan to make your system less vulnerable to current and future climate conditions and get your system back up and running sooner after an event. For more information on CAPs, please refer to the Climate Adaptation (CAP) Requirements and Guidelines found under the Supplemental Materials section of the website listed below.
How do I apply for CAP Funding? In February, the Department notified wastewater communities that we were accepting applications for FFY 2019 CWSRF funding of wastewater construction projects, fiscal sustainability plans (FSP) and climate adaptation plans until April 12th. We have two applications, one for infrastructure (construction) projects (which can also include funding for FSPs and CAPs), and the other for standalone FSP and CAP funding without any construction. Both applications can be found under the FFY 2019 Clean Water State Revolving Fund, FFY 2019 Documents section of the website listed below.
Should I apply? Obviously, some wastewater facilities will get more out of a CAP than other facilities might. It really depends on the issues currently specific to your system and what issues might be expected in the future. You know your system best, but perhaps this is the year you decide, “Hey, I think this might be a good fit and help me with long-term planning to keep my system up and running as Mother Nature continues to change!”
The announcement that was sent out requesting applications, requested that the applications be submitted to brandy.m.piers@maine.gov by 5:00 p.m., April 12th. Unfortunately, Brandy will be out on extended leave during that time, so please submit the applications to john.n.true@maine.gov .
For more information, please contact John True at 287-7808, john.n.true@maine.gov or visit the CWSRF webpage for the announcement letter, application forms, and supporting documents at http://www.maine.gov/dep/water/grants/srfparag.html .
1. d. 0.25 MGD X 230 mg/L = 8.34 = 480 lb/day BOD
2. d. 50 ft X 25 ft X 20 ft X 7.48 gal/cu ft = 187,000 gal
3. a. Detention time = Vol/Flow = 187,000 gal / 250,000 gal/day X 24 hr/day = 18 hours
4. c. 5000 mg/L X 0.187,000 Mgal X 8.34 = 7800 lb
5. c. F/M = Food/Microorganism = lb BOD applied to AT / lb microorganisms in AT
480 lb/day / 7800 lb = 0.06
6. c. lb/day = 7800 lb/15 days = 520 lb/day
7. d. lb/day = conc. X 8.34 X MGD
520 lb/day = 9000 mg/L X 8.34 X MGD
MGD = 520 lb/day / (9000 mg/L X 8.34) = 0.007 MGD = 7,000 gpd
8. a. 7,000 gpd X 1 day/24 hr X 1 hr/60 min = 4.8 gal/min
9. c. 7,000 gal/4 hr X 1 hr/60 min = 30 gal/min
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