"It's expensive, but we have to increase the size of the holding ponds out there," said Mayor Cliff Barth. "New regulations by the state require us to increase the size of the pond for treatment."
Federal law requires each facility in the state to renew their permit every five years, but Breckenridge also has an older facility that needed some additional work. Due to deficiencies in the structure, the city has exceeded permit limits of total suspended solids since 2003.
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Olson gave a brief presentation of the project at the city council meeting, informing members of the dike repair, piping and valve work to be done.
"We're not only going to build a new pond to be used with their old system, but also upgrade their old system to meet today's standards," said Olson later.
The facility currently holds one large primary cell, which performs much of the water treatment, and three secondary pond cells used for discharge.
"The problem with the original design is that the secondary ponds can't get enough water in and out of them," Olson said. "They can only discharge during certain times of the year, and that's why we're adding another pond."
The city has been complying with state standards, but if they decided to ignore the issue, Olson said there would eventually be repercussions. Barth said the replacement of the valves will provide the city with better control of the system.
"It's just something that needs to be done in order to properly take care of our waste products," he said.
pxbnt wrote on Jun 10, 2009 1:20 PM:
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Lisa wrote on Mar 11, 2009 3:35 PM: