King County will invest more than $500 million in clean-water infrastructure in 2009 to protect public health, maintain quality of life, and support broad regional environmental and economic goals, such as protecting Puget Sound and creating jobs.
Over the coming year, the Wastewater Treatment Division will carry out dozens of vital sewer improvement projects to ensure the system continues to operate reliably while keeping pace with continued population growth.
In addition to creating critical infrastructure needed for future economic development, the county’s investment in these projects will maintain and create jobs to support the local economy during a recessionary period.
Projects under way include expanding, upgrading and replacing aging pipelines and pump stations and building new facilities such as the Brightwater treatment system to meet growing service demands over the next several decades.
Other planned projects include controlling combined sewer overflows, cleaning up contaminated sediment in the Duwamish Waterway, and investing in technologies to take the “waste” out of wastewater by creating valuable resources such as energy, reclaimed water and biosolids from treatment process byproducts.
King County is carrying out many of these projects under the Regional Wastewater Services Plan, a 30-year comprehensive plan adopted by the King County Council in 1999.
Here is a brief overview of some of the major projects King County has scheduled for 2009:
North King County/South Snohomish County
Brightwater Treatment System: Construction continues on Brightwater, the county’s largest clean-water project in 40 years. Construction was completed in 2008 on the North Mitigation Area, the 40 acres of public space at the north portion of the plant campus that features habitat enhancement and trails. In 2009, the county will spend about $170 million to complete the liquids processing facilities, the odor control system, and associated earthwork at the treatment plant site.
King County has budgeted about $233 million in 2009 for construction on the conveyance system, which includes a pump station in Bothell and a 13-mile-long wastewater pipeline that will run up to 450 feet below ground from the Brightwater Treatment Plant north of Woodinville to Point Wells near Shoreline. Contractors completed the first 2.6-mile tunnel segment last November, and expect to complete the remaining three tunnel segments by mid-2010. Construction on the mile-long, 600-foot-deep marine outfall was completed last October.
Brightwater Reclaimed Water: Contractors will complete construction this year on a significant portion of a project that will bring reclaimed water from the Brightwater Treatment Plant to irrigators and industrial customers in north King and south Snohomish counties beginning in 2012. Other components of the project include 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 tunnels being built for the Brightwater conveyance system. Expenditures are estimated at $7.6 million in 2009.
North Creek Interceptor: In 2009, King County and Alderwood Water and Wastewater District will continue working on a project replacing a 16,000-foot segment of the North Creek Interceptor, which carries wastewater from a large portion of south Snohomish County to King County’s regional system for treatment. Through an interagency agreement, King County will provide $25 million in project funding in 2009 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 in 2011.
East King County
Bellevue Pump Station Upgrade: The county has budgeted $3.8 million in 2009 to upgrade an aging pump station that serves Bellevue’s central business district and the nearby community. In addition to adding capacity, the project also includes replacement of the facility’s major mechanical and electrical equipment. The project is scheduled for completion in 2011.
Sunset/Heathfield Pump Station Replacement and Forcemain Upgrade: In 2009, the county has budgeted $940,000 to begin the initial phases of planning on a major project to replace a segment of pipeline and two aging pump stations in Bellevue’s Lake Sammamish community. The project will take about five years to complete.
Kirkland Pump Station Modification: Plans are under way to upgrade this aging facility that serves City of Kirkland sewer customers. The project will entail increasing pumping capacity, replacing aging equipment, and installing new, larger diameter pipes. Expenditures in 2009 are budgeted at $1.8 million.
Seattle
Combined Sewer Overflow Control: Improving water quality by controlling combined sewer overflows, or CSOs, that occur in older parts of the system during heavy rains remains a priority in 2009. Major projects this year include investing $2.7 million to wrap up planning on the Puget Sound Beaches projects to control CSOs around North Beach, West Seattle, and south Magnolia. The public will continue to have opportunities to be involved in further CSO control project planning.
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 has budgeted $2.7 million in 2009 to continue its efforts to remove historic CSO contamination and restore habitat at locations in Elliott Bay and the Waterway.
Waste-to-Energy (W2E) Project: The Waste-to-Energy project under way at the West Point Treatment Plant in Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood will focus on upgrading the plant’s cogeneration system to increase the use of digester gas as a source of heat and power. The division is scheduled to solicit contractor bids in 2009. Expenditures this year are budgeted at $1.7 million.
Lower Duwamish Waterway Cleanup: King County has budgeted $768,849 to continue working with Boeing, Port of Seattle, and City of Seattle on a cleanup plan for the Lower Duwamish Waterway Superfund site. Among 2009 highlights, a draft feasibility study that will evaluate a number of possible cleanup options is due to be presented to agencies and the public in April.
53rd Avenue Pump Station: Construction will be completed this year on an Alki area pump station improvement project that features new odor control equipment, upgrades to the facility’s electrical and mechanical systems, and doubling the size of the below-ground facilities. Expenditures this year are budgeted at $3.3 million.
Ballard Siphon: Design is nearly complete on a project to replace a 70-year-old wooden sewer pipe that extends across the Lake Washington Ship Canal. The county will evaluate bids and award construction contracts in 2009. About $5 million is budgeted for the project this year.
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 has budgeted $2.7 million in 2009 to finalize design and advertise the first phase for construction in 2009.
Regionwide
Regional Infiltration and Inflow (I/I) Control Program Implementation: In 2009, King County will invest $1.1 million to partner with local sewer agencies on projects to repair leaky pipes in their system to keep stormwater and groundwater out of our regional treatment facilities. Controlling the infiltration and inflow can reduce demand for treatment and conveyance capacity, saving ratepayers money.
For more information
The wastewater treatment system operated by King County now includes 353 miles of sewer lines, 42 wastewater pump stations, 19 regulator stations, two regional wastewater treatment plants in Renton and Seattle and a third one under construction in south Snohomish County, four wet weather treatment facilities, and two smaller local treatment plants that serve Vashon and 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.
More information about wastewater construction projects and programs is available on the Web site for the Wastewater Treatment Division: http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Construction.aspx
Formerly called Metro, the regional public utility has been preventing water pollution for nearly 50 years.
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Note to editors and reporters: Visit the WTD Newsroom, a portal to information for the news media about the Wastewater Treatment Division, King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks: http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/wtd/Newsroom.aspx