Feb. 12, 2008
Infrastructure investments, environmental improvements top clean-water agency priorities in 2008
Restoring marine habitat, improving water quality in Puget Sound, protecting economic growth, and harnessing the resources created during the wastewater treatment process like natural gas, electricity and water for irrigation top King County Executive Ron Sims' priority list this year.
The county's Wastewater Treatment Division will continue its commitment to public health and the environment by investing more than $500 million in dozens of vital sewer improvement projects in 2008.
Projects under way include upgrading and replacing aging facilities, expanding existing ones and building new facilities such as the Brightwater treatment system to provide enough capacity for the region's growing population. Other clean-water projects include controlling combined sewer overflows,
"Last week I chaired the first meeting of the Puget Sound Partnership’s 27-member Ecosystem Coordination Board and today I announce the huge investment King County is making just this year to protect people's health and the environment," King County Executive Ron Sims said. "This work combined with the efforts of other Puget Sound area governments and agencies will get us to our goal of a healthy Puget Sound."
King County is carrying out these projects as part of the Regional Wastewater Services Plan, a 30-year comprehensive plan adopted by the King County Council in 1999 to ensure the regional sewer system keeps pace with growth and continues meeting regulatory requirements.
The wastewater treatment system operated by King County now includes 335 miles of sewer lines, 42 wastewater pump stations, 19 regulator stations, four stormwater treatment facilities, two regional treatment plants in Renton and Seattle and one under construction in south Snohomish County, a local treatment plant on Vashon Island, and a local treatment plant under construction in Carnation. The system serves 1.4 million people across a 420-square-mile area in the central Puget Sound region including parts of Snohomish and Pierce counties.
A brief overview of some of the major projects King County scheduled for 2008 is below :
East King County
Carnation Wastewater Treatment Facility: The county will complete construction on a new wastewater treatment plant to replace aging septic systems in the City of Carnation. Following testing and start up, the plant is scheduled to begin operating this summer. In addition to the plant, the county and its partners, the City of Carnation and Ducks Unlimited, just completed a major portion of the 59-acre wetland enhancement project at Chinook Bend Natural Area that will use reclaimed water from the new Carnation plant to improve fish and wildlife habitat along the Snoqualmie River. The Chinook Bend Natural Area will serve as the primary discharge point for the plant. The county has budgeted about $2.5 million for these projects in 2008.
Juanita Bay Pump Station Replacement Project: In 2008, the county plans to spend about $6.4 million to complete construction on a new pump station in north Kirkland that will ensure safe and reliable operation by nearly doubling pumping capacity to 30.6 million gallons per day The new pump station, scheduled to begin operating this summer, will include three underground levels of pumping and electrical equipment to send wastewater to interceptor pipes that will carry it to South Plant in Renton for treatment.
Bellevue Pump Station Upgrade: The county has budgeted $10.5 million to begin upgrading an aging pump station in west Bellevue that will connect to a newly built, 5,500-foot-long, 24-inch-diameter force main needed to send wastewater to South Treatment Plant in Renton. The new facilities, scheduled to begin operating in mid-2009, will increase system reliability and add enough capacity to meet the wastewater treatment needs in west Bellevue and Bellevue's central business district for the next 50 years.
North King County/South Snohomish County
Brightwater Treatment System: Construction is well under way on the Brightwater treatment system, the county's largest clean-water project in 40 years. In 2008, the county will spend about $150 million to begin building facilities to process solids, control odors, and power the plant. Construction is largely completed on the Brightwater North Mitigation Area, which includes 40 acres of open space at the north portion of the treatment plant site and features habitat enhancement, trails and a field house for community use. The North Mitigation Area is scheduled to open for public use in late 2008.
King County has budgeted about $200 million in 2008 for construction on the conveyance system, which includes a pump station in Bothell and a 13-mile-long wastewater pipeline that will run 40 to 450 feet below ground from the Brightwater Treatment Plant north of Woodinville to Point Wells in Shoreline. All four tunnel boring machines will be running this year. The county recently selected a contractor to finalize design and begin construction on the 600-foot-deep marine outfall that will be a mile off Point Wells in Puget Sound.
Brightwater Reclaimed Water: Construction continues this year on a pipeline system to bring reclaimed water produced at the Brightwater Treatment Plant to irrigators and industrial customers in north King and south Snohomish counties. The project includes converting an existing force main into a reclaimed water pipeline that will run from the North Creek Pump Station in Bothell to the York Pump Station in Redmond, and installing reclaimed water pipes in the tunnel being built for the Brightwater conveyance system. Expenditures are estimated at $5.2 million in 2008.
Hidden Lake Pump Station/Boeing Creek Trunk: The county plans to spend about $8.3 million in 2008 to replace its existing 40-year-old Hidden Lake Pump Station with a new 6.8-million-gallon-a-day pump station and 12,000 feet of new sewer trunk line near Boeing Creek in Shoreline. The project will increase system reliability and protect public health and the environment by adding capacity that will help reduce overflows into Puget Sound during heavy rains. Other investments include a recently completed 500,000-gallon-capacity underground wastewater storage pipe in Boeing Creek Park and an upgraded a City of Shoreline stormwater detention pond.
North Creek Interceptor: In 2008, King County and Alderwood Water and Wastewater District will move ahead on a project to expand capacity in the North Creek Interceptor, which carries wastewater from a large portion of south Snohomish County to King County's wastewater treatment plants. Through an interagency agreement, King County will provide $18.9 million in project funding in 2008 to the Alderwood Water and Wastewater District to manage permitting and construction. King County will assume ownership of the North Creek Interceptor when the project is completed.
Seattle
Combined Sewer Overflow Control: The county will continue its program to reduce combined sewer overflows, or CSOs, that occur in older parts of the system during heavy rains, degrading water quality and posing public health risks. King County will invest $2 million in the Puget Sound Beach project to evaluate CSO control alternatives around North Beach, West Seattle, and south Magnolia. Alternatives being considered include treatment, storage, pumping, or stormwater control improvements in the local drainage basin. A public process will enable people to get involved in aspects of project planning, including evaluating and commenting on various alternatives and technologies.
Sediment Management Program: This program enables King County to proactively address sediment contamination near combined sewer overflow, or CSO, locations in Puget Sound. The county just completed a $3.6 million project to remove about 20,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment at the old Denny Way outfall near Myrtle Edwards Park, and will budget $3.1 million in 2008 to continue its efforts to remove historic CSO contamination and restore habitat at other locations in Elliott Bay.
Waste-to-Energy: Wastewater is also a potentially significant source of energy, as evidenced by the Waste-to-Energy (W2E) project under way at the West Point Treatment Plant in Magnolia. The W2E project will harness digester gas, a renewable or "green" source of energy, as fuel for cogeneration facilities to provide heat and power at the plant. During 2008, the county will finalize design and pursue partners to help fund and support the project before soliciting contractor bids in 2009. Expenditures this year are budgeted at $2.4 million.
Lower Duwamish Waterway Cleanup: The county will continue its commitment to cleaning up contaminated sediments, implementing source control actions, and complying with agreements with regulators and local governments. The $1 million investment in 2008 will include continued collaboration with the City of Seattle, the Port of Seattle and The Boeing Company on the Lower Duwamish Waterway Superfund site, which is part of a long-term cleanup effort.
53rd Avenue Pump Station: Construction will begin in 2008 at this Alki pump station to increase system reliability and help make the facility a better neighbor. The county will install new odor control equipment, upgrade the facility's electrical and mechanical systems, and double the size of the below-ground pump station. Expenditures this year are expected to be $2.8 million.
Ballard Siphon: To protect water quality in the Lake Washington Ship Canal, King County is investing $13.3 million in the Ballard Siphon Project, which will rehabilitate a 70-year-old wooden sewer pipe that extends across the floor of Salmon Bay near the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks. In 2008, the county will focus on completing design, securing permits, and soliciting bids for construction.
King Street Odor Control: In 2008, the county will continue a project to build a new underground odor control facility that includes a new one-story, 340-square-foot electrical enclosure just south of King Street Station near the Weller Street Bridge. The project will help improve air quality in south Pioneer Square and the stadium areas by reducing or eliminating odors from the Elliott Bay Interceptor, a large sewer pipe that carries wastewater from south Seattle through the downtown area to West Point Treatment Plant. Expenditures this year are expected to be $2.6 million.
Murray Avenue Pump Station: This year, King County will spend $1.2 million upgrading the electrical system in this West Seattle pump station. The county will also finalize design on a structure for new odor control and emergency generator equipment, which will incorporate the design guidelines established with the help of local community members.
South King County
Kent/Auburn Conveyance System Improvement Project: This project will expand capacity in the rapidly growing south portion of King County's service area by adding approximately five miles of pipes in Kent, Auburn, Algona and Pacific. The county identified a preferred alternative last summer and will begin an environmental review of the project alternatives this spring, which will include opportunities for public comment. The county has budgeted $4.3 million in 2008 to finalize design and secure needed permits to begin construction in 2009.
Black Diamond Wastewater Storage Facility: In 2008, the county will continue design on an underground wastewater storage facility in the City of Black Diamond that will extend the life of existing equipment and defer the need to build additional new conveyance pipes and pumping facilities for several years. The county plans to spend about $1 million of the project's overall $5 million budget this year.
South Plant Odor Control Improvements: To be a good neighbor and protect air quality in the South Treatment Plant's host community, King County will spend about $5.8 of the $7 million budgeted to upgrade odor control systems at the 42-year-old treatment plant. Odor upgrades will include covering open process facilities and installing new technologies. The project is scheduled to be completed early in 2008.
Regionwide
Regional Infiltration and Inflow (I/I) Control Program Implementation: In 2008, King County will invest $1.8 million to partner with local sewer agencies on engineering and design work for two and possible three rehabilitation projects that will reduce I/I, which is clean water that gets into the sewer system from leaky pipes or manholes or pipes on private property. Controlling I/I can reduce demand for treatment and conveyance capacity, saving ratepayers money and reducing overflows of sewage during heavy rains. The initial projects are among the first to implemented as part of the region's I/I Reduction Program, developed in partnership with the 34 cities and sewer agencies served by King County's regional wastewater agency.
Reclaimed Water Comprehensive Plan: In 2008, the county will invest about $1.5 million to develop a comprehensive plan to guide King County's reclaimed water program and identify potential projects to make highly treated wastewater available for non-drinking purposes such as irrigation or industrial uses.
Emergency Generator Program: Since 2002, King County has installed emergency back-up power systems in nearly all of its off-site facilities to help prevent sewage back ups during electrical outages. In 2008, the county will invest about $3.7 million on projects to install new generators in the Barton and Murray pump stations in West Seattle, and on project plans to replace or rehabilitate aging generators at other facilities.
For more information
More information about wastewater construction projects and programs is available on the Web site for the Wastewater Treatment Division: http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wtd/homepage/construction.htm.
Formerly called Metro, the regional public utility has been preventing water pollution for more than 40 years.