Western Wayne County Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant Project
UPDATE
Residents,
Wayne County Water and Sewer Authority is aware of ongoing concerns associated with odors from the new sewage treatment plant. Please note that the Authority takes these concerns seriously, and offers the following updates and clarifications on odor issues:
- The new treatment process has been underway in Palmyra since the end of June.
- Since the end of June, several construction activities associated with the decommissioning of the former Palmyra and Macedon wastewater treatment plants have occurred. In both scenarios, former anaerobic digesters were being emptied and demolished. Anaerobic digestion is prone to generation of unpleasant odors. In Palmyra specifically, all former anaerobic digestion tanks have now been removed and demolished as of mid-September and therefore has permanently alleviated an on-site source of odors from these construction activities.
- Sewage piping containing flows from Marion and Macedon have been active since mid to late August. These pumping facilities were all designed with the ability to feed chemicals, specifically calcium nitrate, which are commonly used to prevent the generation of unpleasant odors (hydrogen sulfide) by preventing sewage from turning septic. During the initial startup period, the equipment provided to feed chemicals have had controls/programming related issues. These chemical systems are now up and running as intended. We will be continuing to work to optimize these systems to prevent odor generation.
- Please note the wastewater treatment plant in Palmyra is designed with gas monitoring equipment in the influent building specifically tracking gas concentrations such as hydrogen sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide, a gas known for unpleasant odors, has been present. This is an expected gas in sanitary sewage conveyance, and its formation can be controlled via the addition of chemicals noted previously. At this time, hydrogen sulfide formation levels are beginning to be better controlled and are consistently well below hazardous levels. The odor from hydrogen sulfide can be detected at levels much lower than any hazardous level.
- Methane has been noted as a concern from the public. Please note that the new wastewater treatment facility utilizes aerobic treatment and digestion processes which would not be expected to result in the formation of methane gas. Please also note that methane itself is an odorless gas.
Western Wayne County Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant Project
The Towns of Macedon, Marion, Palmyra, and Walworth are working together with the Village of Palmyra and the Wayne County Water and Sewer Authority (WCWSA) to build a new regional wastewater treatment facility.
Currently, four of the communities own and operate their facilities, which are all faced with aging infrastructure issues and more stringent regulatory requirements. Soon, each community’s existing treatment facilities are faced with the need to make significant improvements to address needs.
Given the significance of the upgrades and costs, the communities engaged the WCWSA, and their consultants, to evaluate the feasibility of a regional approach that would provide a more cost-effective long-term solution. The regional approach will eliminate the need for each community to undertake the substantial cost implications of independent upgrades.
The new regional wastewater treatment facility is being built adjacent to the Village of Palmyra’s current wastewater facility on route 31 in the Village of Palmyra. New pumping stations, screening facilities, and transmission systems will convey each community’s wastewater to the new regional facility, thereby consolidating operations into one modern and more efficient facility. Once the new plant is up and running, the outdated facilities will be decommissioned and taken out of service.
The Benefits of a Regional approach to Infrastructure (WWTP)
