High winds and rain from hurricanes have the potential to damage wastewater treatment facilities leading to long, unplanned outages. As we are in the midst of another hurricane season, it is essential for wastewater management teams to take appropriate measures to prepare. Many facilities have developed their own emergency plan to prepare for this situation. EBS hopes that these recommendations can benefit plants faced with this threat.
Key Parameters
For both ASB and activated sludge systems, there are specific key parameters that facilities should focus on.
Key parameters to focus on with either system are:
- System Volume
- Retention Time
- Degree of Biomass Loss
- Time Without Oxygen
- Time Without Food
These factors should be examined when deciding whether to add bacteria, nutrients, or food. When a storm hits, getting supplies on-site may be very difficult.
Recommendations
We recommend that plants have a stock of one or more of the following on-site as part of their emergency plan:
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- Bioaugmentation Cultures (aka Inoculum) – In case of washout or loss of power, our BioStar™ or MicroStar™ formulas can be applied to re-establish viable biomass.
- BAC Unit (Patented On-site bacteria grow-up systems) – Our BAC Units help increase the amount of viable bacteria applied 100x.
- Nutrient – EBS MacroGro nutrient formulations support cell synthesis to achieve optimal BOD removal.
- Food (BOD) source – Oftentimes, after a storm event, production is down, and minimal BOD. EBS MicroCarb™ provides a carbon source necessary for biomass growth.
- Alternate oxygen source – O2 deficiency can arise when aerators are down. Our Calcium Nitrate-based solution can be applied safely and effectively to reduce the negative impacts of oxygen-deficient conditions and prevent the formation of Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S).
EBS has a proven record of helping sites restart their system after outages that have lasted a few days to several months. Contact us to help develop a cost-effective, customized plan for your unique system.
