East Cedar Creek Fresh Water Supply District (ECCFWSD) operates two wastewater treatment plants (WWTP).  The South WWTP is located along the east side of Hwy 198 just north of the entrance to the City of Enchanted Oaks, and serves the southern area of the district.  The North WWTP is located in an unincorporated area on Hammer Road, just off Welch Lane in Gun Barrel City and serves the district’s northern sector.

 

The South WWTP is approximately six years old.  It is a modern, state-of-the-art plant with a permitted capacity of 200,000 gallons per day or .2 million gallons per day (MGD) as stated within the permit.  With less than one-third of the plant’s capacity in use daily, the plant will serve the southern portion of the district for the long term.

 

The South WWTP sits on a 178-acre tract with 138 acres dedicated toward water irrigation from the plant.  Treated water effluent from the plant is processed to a large holding pond and then utilized as irrigation source water. The residual sludge is processed for disposal to a sanitary landfill.

 

The district has contracted out cutting, baling, and selling of hay for the plant’s irrigated acreage.  We expect to clear about $15,000 in revenue from hay sales for the current growing season.  These funds are deposited in the district’s general fund account and used to cover other operating expenses in the district.

 

The North WWTP was built in 1979 with a treatment capacity of .626 MGD with a surge capacity of 1.3 MGD for a period not to exceed two hours.  Since then the plant has undergone a series of upgrades with a cost exceeding $1.5 million.  With these upgrades, the district is now permitted for a treatment capacity of .750 MGD which will satisfy district needs for the mid-term. The new permit imposes more challenges to the treatment process due new and more stringent water quality discharge limits. The major portion of the upgrade cost was due to the need to construct a 1-mgd tertiary clarifier to treat and reduce phosphorous limits to a 1 part per million or less prior to discharging effluent from the treatment facility directly to Cedar Creek Lake.

 

The wastewater treatment process at both of these plants is relatively simple but produces impressive results.  Influent entering the plants is introduced to millions of microscopic organisms which utilizes the organic waste as food. This controlled process is simple yet complicated, but is one of the most dominate practices used to convert domestic wastewater to regulatory permitted discharge qualities beneficial to streams creeks and alternative uses such as irrigation. 

 

When a plant is operating properly, there is no smell to the treatment process.  Wastewater is aerated during the treatment process and never allowed to go septic.  Wastewater treatment is generally a clean process for plant staff.

 

At the district’s North WWTP, wastewater coming into the plant passes through bar screens and grit traps, removing debris and sand, before flowing into one of two large oval shaped oxidation ditches, commonly called racetracks.

 

The capacity in each oxidation ditch is approximately 375,000 gallons.  In each ditch, four 11’ long rotors, each with 20 disks, rotate in a circular motion providing the necessary oxygen and mixing for the treatment process.

 

Microorganisms in the oxidation ditches consume the organic matter in the wastewater for energy and new cell growth.  Although wastewater is continually entering and leaving the oxidation ditches, the detention time in the ditches is approximately 24 hours.

 

From the oxidation ditches, wastewater flows equally of two clarifiers.  The clarifiers look like large circular open-top tanks buried with the top at ground level.  Each tank is 37’ in diameter and 9’10” deep.

 

The microorganisms and inert materials settle to the bottom of the clarifiers and clear water is drawn off the top.  The clear water is processed to the new Tertiary Clarifier to chemically remove unwanted phosphorus. The effluent water from the Tertiary Clarifier then flows to a large filter which removes any remaining particle that did not settle in the clarifiers.  The filter in use at the North WWTP has a filter area of 324 square feet.

 

Following filtration, the final phase of the treatment process is disinfection.  Clear water leaves the filter and flows to a chlorine contact chamber.

 

Chlorine is added at the inlet to the contact chamber at a high enough dosage to maintain a minimum of one milligram per liter after a minimum of 20 minutes contact time.  The treated effluent flows back to the reservoir.

 

The microorganisms and solid materials which settle to the bottom of the clarifiers are known as waste activated sludge.  A portion of this sludge is pumped back to the oxidation ditches to maintain the microorganism population.

 

The excess sludge is pumped to a plate and frame press where it is pressed to reduce its water content to 60%.  The water is returned to the oxidation ditches and the sludge is hauled to the Neches River Authority Compost Facility where the product is treated and processed to a reusable product beneficial for landscaping and agriculture purposes.  This in one way your district is assisting in the going green concept.

 

Although the physical layout of the South WWTP is quite different from the plant in the north, the treatment process is relatively the same.  Because the effluent from the North WWTP is returned to the lake, this plant must meet much higher state standards regarding nutrients, chemicals, and oxygen in the water. 

East Cedar Creek Fresh Water Supply District (ECCFWSD) maintains two separate wastewater collection systems, each flowing to a wastewater treatment plant, one in the northern sector of the district and one in the south.

 

Both wastewater collection systems are a combination of conventional gravity sewer and a considerable amount of pressure sewer which often starts with low pressure grinder pumps at individual residences.

 

The grinder pump portion of the two systems is widely used in subdivisions adjacent to the lake.  These locations are well below normal operating grades for a gravity sewer system.

 

Pressure systems were initially developed in response to the enactment of stricter water quality regulations designed to protect drinking water around surface water impoundments, such as the Cedar Creek Reservoir.

 

Wastewater collection begins at the homes and businesses of district’s customers, either by gravity or under pressure.  Residential or business gravity or pressure lines connect to sewer main lines which connect to other sewer main lines, and eventually to one or two main lines flowing into one of the district’s two wastewater treatment plants.

 

The diameter of sewer main lines increase in size as other intersecting force mains create additional capacity flows.  The large main lines flowing into the treatment plants range in size from eight to twelve inches in diameter.

 

Manholes for line maintenance are located in those areas where the sewer main lines flow by gravity.  There are approximately 980 manholes in the district’s two wastewater collection systems.

 

In some areas of the district, pressure sewer begins with one-horsepower grinder pumps, located in individual tanks, receiving household or business wastewater.  When the tank is filled, the pump is activated, and the contents are pumped into a small diameter residential or business force main which connects to other sewer main lines.

 

In those areas where gravity flow is not possible, flow in the linear sewer main lines are moved towards the wastewater treatment plants by three or five-horsepower pumps located in in-line pump stations known as lift stations.

 

The district maintains a total of 74 lift stations, each one with a minimum of two pumps.  The largest lift station feeding directly into the treatment plants have three 40- horsepower pumps.

 

The district’s greatest needs are in the wastewater collection systems.  Over the years, deterioration of system components, often caused by hydrogen sulfide gas acting upon concrete tanks, manholes and lift stations, has eroded the weatherproofing of the systems.  A large number of these manholes and stations are in need of repair or upgrade.

 

Additionally, the district must continue the upgrading of individual residence grinder units.  Years ago, in a large number of instances, the original residential septic tanks were pumped out, the lateral lines or drain fields disconnected, and pumps were installed to pump from the “clear” tank into the wastewater collection systems.  These individual systems were not adequately weatherproofed.

 

As a result of these shortcomings, large quantities of rainwater or groundwater enter the collection systems during any significant rain event.  Not only does the volume of water negatively impact the efficiency of the treatment plants but the expense of treating the rainwater as wastewater is costly.

 

While the wastewater collection systems have not been totally ignored in recent years, the district’s emphasis has been to fund needed construction or upgrades at the district’s two water and two wastewater treatment plants.

 

Now that these facilities are either in good shape or soon will be, the district has increased the priority to eliminate or significantly reduce the inflow (above ground surface) and infiltration (below surface level) of storm water and groundwater from entering the collection systems (I&I).

 

The Board of Directors in 2004 approved to set aside $100,000 annually to assist in the upgrading of the sewer infrastructure. Since then the district has been successful in stretching these annual funds by applying jointly with Henderson County and the Gun Barrel City for Community Development Grants. Since 2004 the joint efforts have successfully acquired four grants with the most recent being the replacement of old clay tile sewer mains in Tamarack Subdivision of Gun Barrel City and the upgrade of a major Lift Station in the Tamarack Subdivision. This is the type of joint involvement that benefits the County Residents, Community Residents as well as the District at large.

 

It is the District’s Goals to continue to assess the needs of the area served (CCN) and maintain an open door policy for all concerned.