Robust Systems Keep Wastewater Flowing Smoothly When dealing with all the surprises that can come through wastewater systems, robust and simple processes can go a long way toward keeping things flowing smoothly. In this recent Water Talk session, Gerald Seidl, senior vice president of Headworks International, describes several such solutions ranging from upgraded mechanical to new biological technologies. New multi-rake bar screens with finer-screen openings than ever before now provide a...  Continue Reading...

A Better Path To Ammonia Removal Ammonia removal is a key metric for assessing wastewater treatment facility performance. However, traditional methods to monitor the process — based on measuring process parameters or nitrogen species — tend to be lagging indicators.  Continue Reading...

New RO And Other Techniques Lead To Improved Performance For water utilities facing various water contamination issues, there is no single catch-all treatment. That is why in this recent Water Talk interview Ronit Erlitzki and Doug Craver of AdEdge Water Technologies share treatment options that can be used alone or in combination to address diverse challenges. They introduce a new reverse osmosis (RO) treatment technique capable of raising recovery rates by 20 percent and reducing concentrate volume...  Continue Reading...

The Rising Need For Resiliency For water utilities, it can be hard enough to keep up with day-to-day demands — given the poor state of infrastructure, lack of funding, a retiring workforce, et al. — let alone prepare for events that have yet to happen. But building resiliency for "what if" scenarios is extremely important, says Dr. Zeynep Erdal, Integrated Solutions Leader for Black & Veatch’s water business. In this Water Talk interview, Dr.  Continue Reading...

Bringing Light To Dark Data If you're not benefiting from the analytics readily available to your utility operation, you're missing out on efficiency and cost savings. For  the curious and for skeptics, or if you want to advance your smart water journey, this Water Talk interview with Kevin Stively, Vice President and Smart Utility Services Leader at Brown and Caldwell, is a must-listen. Stively notes how the investment in smart technologies can be small...  Continue Reading...

The Future Of Water Reuse Water reuse has long been trending up, but where do we stand in 2019 and beyond, particularly with respect to potable reuse, which has been more difficult to implement? Andrew Salveson, Water Reuse Practice Director at Carollo Engineers, talked about adoption rates, national and regional activity, and what's on tap for water reuse in this Water Talk interview. While the West and Southwest parts of the U.S. have been faster to embrace the...  Continue Reading...

Enhanced Biological Phosphorus Removal Evolves With S2EBPR Leon Downing, Principal Process Engineer and Innovation Leader at Black & Veatch, sat down with Water Talk's Todd Schnick and Kevin Westerling to discuss the exciting developments taking place with sidestream enhanced biological phosphorous removal, or S2EBPR. Black & Veatch is co-leading a Water Research Foundation (WRF) study conducted to establish a standard research approach for S2EBPR, which Downing calls "the evolution of...  Continue Reading...

How New Technology Lowers The Cost Of Ownership For Remote Sites Whether a utility operates a couple of pumping stations or a couple hundred, driving out to those locations for monitoring and maintenance is labor-intensive and costly.  Continue Reading...

Blower Rentals Offer Tailored Solution To Temporary Needs There are many reasons for a utility to rent a blower for wastewater aeration. Besides the obvious — an emergency — plant operators may need a rental to bridge the gap during upgrade projects, supply seasonal need to supplement air, or perform testing.  Continue Reading...

Presidential Plans At WEF Recently appointed Water Environment Federation (WEF) President Jackie Jarrell understands the trials and tribulations of WEF members, and not just from afar. As the deputy director of Charlotte Water, a utility with about 1,000 employees and 800,000 customers, she has firsthand experience with common industry challenges, including aging infrastructure, a retiring workforce, and emerging contaminants of concern such as PFOS. As president of WEF, ...  Continue Reading...