Background

The Master Plan 2001 Update was developed to outline the continuation of the capital improvement plan at the Water Pollution Control Plant. New regulations in the liquid and solids treatment areas, aging infrastructure, and capacity issues require capital improvements. In order to address these issues, a Master Plan team was formed to evaluate the impact of possible upcoming regulations and, from that, develop a plan for major capital improvements at the plant. Team members were chosen based on their experience in the field. Six experts from six different firms worked with plant staff on this Plan.

Specifically, the Master Plan 2001 Update addresses possible upcoming regulations in the areas of nutrient limits, wet weather bypasses, and solids disposal, as well as addressing the aging infrastructure. The Plan is compatible with the strategic direction of the County Board to develop a world-class urban community with secure, attractive, residential and commercial neighborhoods. It is also compatible with the strategic direction of the Bureau in the areas of competitiveness, automation, and being a good neighbor. The Plan also addresses future capacity issues by planning for an increase in flow to 40 MGD by the year 2020.

To develop the master plan, the team brainstormed potential options for meeting the goals described above. Evaluation criteria were developed, which allowed the team to narrow down the possibilities. Major factors in the evaluation criteria were: reliability, operability, public acceptance, life cycle cost, ability to upgrade/expand as needed, flexibility, and constructability/maintenance during construction.

A potential list of alternative solutions was developed by the team that required further study. The expert on the team in each particular area was assigned the task of developing technical memoranda, which defined design criteria and estimated costs. The team critiqued the technical memos and ultimately developed a summary plan that incorporated solutions for the defined challenges.