Full Answer
Where is the post point resource recovery plant in Bellingham WA?
Post Point Resource Recovery Plant In 1974, Bellingham replaced the Whatcom Creek treatment plant with the Post Point Resource Recovery Plant at 200 McKenzie Avenue. The Post Point Resource Recovery Plant began providing primary treatment for up to a peak flow of 55 million gallons per day (mgd) for the areas served by sewer.
Where is the wastewater treatment plant in Bellingham WA?
The City first provided primary wastewater treatment in 1947, discharging effluent into a shallow part of Bellingham Bay, from a treatment plant located near the mouth of Whatcom Creek. In 1974, Bellingham replaced the Whatcom Creek treatment plant with the Post Point Resource Recovery Plant at 200 McKenzie Avenue.
How does the post Point wastewater treatment plant work?
The Post Point Wastewater Treatment Plant achieves 95% removal of organics and solids in the treated effluent. Effluent discharged to Bellingham Bay has a biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) concentration of 9 parts per million (ppm) and a total suspended solids (TSS) concentration of seven ppm.
What happened to the Whatcom Creek treatment plant?
In 1974, Bellingham replaced the Whatcom Creek treatment plant with the Post Point Resource Recovery Plant at 200 McKenzie Avenue. The Post Point Resource Recovery Plant began providing primary treatment for up to a peak flow of 55 million gallons per day (mgd) for the areas served by sewer.
Where does the city of Bellingham discharge the treated wastewater?
Bellingham BayFollowing treatment, the water is discharged into Bellingham Bay from an outfall located a quarter mile offshore at a depth of 60 feet.
Where does the city of Bellingham get its water?
Lake WhatcomLake Whatcom is the source of drinking water for the citizens of Bellingham. On occasion, water from the Middle Fork of the Nooksack River is diverted into Lake Whatcom to supplement the supply of water available for treatment.
How many millions of gallons of water per day at peak flow enter into Bellingham Bay?
The Post Point Resource Recovery Plant provided primary treatment for up to a peak flow of 55 million gallons per day for the area's sewered population.
Where does sewage in Seattle go?
West Point, located next to Discovery Park in Seattle, is part of King County's regional wastewater treatment system.
Is Bellingham WA tap water safe?
Bellingham water is safe to drink. The tasks the Bellingham DPW must perform as a public water supplier under the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act ensure that to be the case.
Is Bellingham water hard or soft?
Washington water hardness is considered very low to moderately hard. The average water hardness is between 12 PPM to 218 PPM, which is considered to be hard water, by the USGS water hardness measures....Water Hardness by City.City and Zip CodesWater Hardness DataBellingham 98225 | 98226 | 9822924 PPM (mg/L) or 1 gpg22 more rows
How deep is Lake Whatcom Washington?
350′Lake Whatcom / Max depth
What does wastewater look like?
1:024:14How Do Sewer Systems Work? - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipWaste in ideal environments sewer systems are completely gravity-fed meaning that the pipes slopedMoreWaste in ideal environments sewer systems are completely gravity-fed meaning that the pipes sloped downward from the source your toilet to the wastewater treatment plant.
Where is Bellingham Bay?
Bellingham Bay is located between the Strait of Georgia and the Strait of Juan de Fuca near the United States-Canadian border. The Bay extends from Lummi Peninsula to the west to Clark's Point to the east. The Nooksack River is the largest freshwater system entering Bellingham Bay.
Is raw sewage dumped into Puget Sound?
For decades, these municipalities discharged raw sewage into Puget Sound and nearby waterways from their combined sewer systems. King County and the City of Seattle are required to control their combined sewer overflows, or CSOs, by 2025 and 2030, respectively.
How do I find sewer maps?
How to get sewer maps. You can visit your local authority's offices to inspect their public sewer map, or you can order an asset location search from the water company in question (many of them offer this online through Digdat).
Is sewage a wastewater?
Sewage, also called wastewater, is the contaminated water from homes, schools, and businesses. It comes from toilets, showers, clothes washers, dishwashers, etc.
What is the post point waste system?
Once built and operational, the solid waste system at Post Point will be a process that protects public health, safety and natural resources while continuing to meet demand for efficient, quality service essential for a growing, diverse community.
Why are improvements needed at Post Point Resource Recovery Plant?
These improvements are needed because equipment is aging, expensive to repair, and incinerates (burns) rather than recovers resources .
What is the resource recovery solution for wastewater solids?
The resource recovery solution for wastewater solids will minimize the social impacts of handling biosolids while supporting the core values of Bellingham residents via a “Triple Bottom Line Plus” (fis cal, environmental, technical, socially sustainable) assessment . Below outlines some of the values from the updated 2018 Climate Action Plan outlined in the Post Point Resource Recovery Project.
What is the Post Point Resource Recovery Project?
The Post Point Resource Recovery project is a defining opportunity for Bellingham to implement its 2018 Climate Action Plan and reduce sewer utility carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 60-80%.
How long has Post Point been in operation?
The Post Point facility has been in operation for nearly 45 years and carries out two essential and related treatment processes: liquids and solids. In 2009, the City identified in the Comprehensive Sewer Plan a need for additional wastewater capacity at the Post Point Plant.
When will biosolids be operational?
Project planning began in 2017 with a series of community workshops and is expected to be complete with a fully operational biosolids facility by the end of 2025.
When was Bellingham's post point wastewater plant built?
In 1974 , Bellingham replaced the Whatcom Creek treatment plant with the Post Point Wastewater Treatment Plant at the foot of Harris Avenue. The Post Point Resource Recovery Plant provided primary treatment for up to a peak flow of 55 million gallons per day for the area’s sewered population.
Where does the Deming Glacier flow into Lake Whatcom?
Rainwater in the Lake Whatcom watershed. Water from the Deming Glacier on Mt. Baker flows to the Middle Fork of the Nooksack River and is seasonally diverted into Lake Whatcom through a tunnel under Bowman Mountain.
What happens to your wastewater?
Sewers were first installed throughout the developed areas of Bellingham in 1892. These original sewers collected both sewage and rainwater and discharged them into Whatcom Creek and Bellingham Bay.
Where does the Deming Glacier flow?
Water from the Deming Glacier on Mt. Baker flows to the Middle Fork of the Nooksack River and is seasonally diverted into Lake Whatcom through a tunnel under Bowman Mountain.
Is the sewer system still in use?
Most of these early sewers are still in use. Most sewage pipes are now separate from those carrying stormwater and send their flows directly to the wastewater treatment plant.
Project Summary
The Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District was originally formed in 1968 to replace individual septic systems in the Geneva community with a comprehensive sewage collection and conveyance system due to degradation of Lake Whatcom water quality from the septic systems.
Project Cost
The total project cost is estimated at $220 million. The District’s share is estimated at $10.6 million (4.8% of the total cost).
Preliminary Treatment
- Preliminary treatment conditions the wastewater by removing materials which can harm or plug plant processes. It also contains a receiving station for residential septic tank sludge which is generated countywide. The wastewater is pre-chlorinated and aerated to control bacteria and re…
Primary Treatment
- In primary treatment, the wastewater flows into large basins called primary clarifiers. The water remains in the primary clarifiers for approximately two hours. While there, the suspended solids (primary sludge) settle to the bottom and oil and grease (scum) rise to the surface where they are skimmed off and sent to solids handling for disposal.
Secondary Treatment
- Aeration Basin Secondary treatment uses micro-organisms (activated sludge) to remove pollutants from the wastewater. The wastewater flows into large, enclosed aeration basins. Here, activated sludge is mixed with the wastewater and pure oxygen is added to create a perfect environment for the microorganisms to trap and remove contaminants. Secondary Clarifiers Th…
Disinfection
- Following secondary treatment, wastewater spends an hour in the chlorine contact chamber where chlorine is added to kill any remaining disease-causing organisms. Sodium bisulfite is added following the treatment to neutralize the chlorine to protect fish and sea life. Microscopic protozoan help treat wastewater before it is discharged into Bellingham Bay. Laboratory person…
Plant Effluent
- Following treatment, the water is discharged into Bellingham Bay from an outfall located a quarter mile offshore at a depth of 60 feet. The Post Point Wastewater Treatment Plant achieves 95% removal of organics and solids in the treated effluent. Effluent discharged to Bellingham Bay has a biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) concentration of 9 parts per million (ppm) and a total susp…
Solids Handling
- Secondary solids are placed on a gravity belt, where polymer is added to thicken the sludge. Excess water is then removed from the primary and secondary sludge by high-speed centrifuges. The sludge is incinerated in two multiple-hearth gas-fired incinerators at a temperature of 1500 degrees Fahrenheit, which reduces the volume by approximately 80% and destroys all pathogen…
Laboratory
- The City of Bellingham operates a state-certified laboratory. The laboratory performs compliance testing for the plant’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit and process control testing for each unit process. For treated effluent water quality information, please see the Effluent section. For more information about the laboratory and monitoring progr…
ADMINISTRATION/CONTROL
- State-certified plant operators are on duty 24 hours a day to monitor and control the treatment process. The plant is fully automated and has a state-of-the-art computer system which provides operators with accurate and up-to-date information.
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