The Village of Chelsea, Michigan, population of 4,200 residents, needed to upgrade or replace their existing iron
removal plant to provide additional capacity for the growth they were experiencing and to
replace old equipment and facilities.
Tetra Tech MPS (TTMPS) was retained to examine the options
for upgrading the treatment facility and to apply for State of Michigan Drinking Water
Revolving Fund (DWRF) loan monies for the project. The first step in this process,
preparation of a Project Plan, was completed in 1999. This Plan examined the options for
treatment plant upgrades. The most cost-effective alternative was the construction of a
low pressure, reverse osmosis (RO) membrane treatment system for softening of the
groundwater supply. This option was compared with conventional lime softening and the
existing treatment for iron removal.
Significant public input was solicited throughout the planning and design process to
determine whether the users wanted to upgrade their water treatment process from iron
removal only to softening. The public response was overwhelmingly in favor of
upgrading to softening treatment. Based on this response, the Village elected to proceed
with the membrane softening option.
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) required that a pilot study
be done for all new membrane treatment plants. At the beginning of the project, there
were no other membrane softening plants in the State either in operation or design.
Because of the strict funding deadlines for the DWRF program, and the Village's need to
get new capacity on line as soon as possible, there was not sufficient time to conduct a
pilot study. Fortunately, TTMPS was simultaneously completing a pilot study for a low
pressure, RO treatment system in a neighboring community with a similar quality source
of groundwater. Based on the results from this pilot study, the State waived the
requirement for a separate pilot study for Chelsea provided that the same equipment was
used. The State did stipulate that the equipment used must have National Sanitation
Foundation (NSF) certification.
Design of the new treatment plant began in January, 2000 and was complete by May,
2000. Bidding of the project took place in the fall of 2000, with construction
commencing in December, 2000 and completed by the summer of 2002. The plant began
producing softened water in July, 2002. Includes tables, figures.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 550 KB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 13 |
| Published : | 03/05/2003 |
