Chief operator: Mingo wastewater treatment plant ‘one of the best’ | News, Sports, Vacancies

By Christopher Dacanay SUPERVISION — Kyle Moffat, chief operator of Mingo Junction’s wastewater department, stood over two “ditches” of the village’s treatment plant for separating water from raw sewage.

MINGO JUNCTION — Most people don’t pay attention to the water they used after it goes down the drain. However, for workers at the Mingo Junction wastewater treatment plant, how this water is treated before it is re-entered into the Earth is critical.

Like other wastewater treatment plants, the plant’s mission is to collect wastewater, including stormwater and raw sewage, and process it into clean water suitable for release into the environment.

The plant is designed to process up to 3 million gallons per day, although it averages about 600,000 gallons per day. It is a Class II wastewater treatment facility and is classified by the Environmental Protection Agency. Plant classification is largely determined by the size of the plant and determines acceptable levels of certain contaminants that may be present in the water being treated.

By issuing permits every five years, the Environmental Protection Agency determines the standards that a facility must meet to ensure that the water is suitable for discharge. At Mingo Junction, certified staff are required to regularly test water quality, including pH, temperature, biological oxygen demand and total suspended solids. Test results are submitted monthly to the Environmental Protection Agency in the form of an electronic emissions monitoring report.

The plant is allowed by the EPA to discharge water containing 30 parts per million, or 30 milligrams of solids per liter of water, according to Kyle Moffat, chief operator of the Mingo Junction Wastewater Department.

In addition, the EPA requires plants to operate at a particulate matter removal rate of 85 percent.

The Mingo Junction plant meets those standards and several others, with an average removal rate of 85 percent and four parts per million currently, Moffat said.

With years of experience in wastewater treatment, Moffat said he has seen how other plants operate. He added that the Mingo Junction plant, which has received a number of improvements over the past five years, is operating “super effective.”

“In my opinion, this is one of the best operating plants in the Valley,” said Moffat.

The purpose of treatment is separation – obtaining the purest possible water before it is disinfected and drained.

The Mingo plant receives wastewater from the entire village, Moffat said. Two years ago, to comply with Environmental Protection Agency regulations, the village added controlled separation of wastewater and stormwater in some areas, with the latter being discharged directly into Cross Creek.

Untreated wastewater supplied to the plant is discharged underground. “well wet” where the screen filters out large objects. “Composite samplers” undergo automated tests to measure wastewater content 24 hours a day. Once the well is sufficiently filled, three alternating feed pumps send the material to the next stage, built two years ago.

Built at a cost of $5.2 million, the building is attached to a 1-million-gallon equalization basin that automatically catches overflow from the pumps. Inside the building is a sand separating machine that uses a corkscrew to filter out small particles such as gravel, rags, paper and even lumps of grease.

The pipe uses gravity to pump wastewater into two reservoirs known as “ditches” where the separation of water and wastewater mainly takes place.

Working continuously, each ditch is filled with 310 fine diffusers that release oxygen bubbles that aerate the wastewater. “This is good for the bacteria that break down the wastewater and prevents the contents from smelling bad,” Moffatt said.

Sewage swirls around the ditches like “race track” said Moffat. Flow direction “partitions” at the bottom help separate the contents, causing water to float to the surface and heavy wastewater to sink. Jets of water help remove solid particles from above. These substances are collected and sent to drying areas, where jet filters capture the water and return it back to the plant.

The thick sludge collected at the bottom of the ditch is fed into a 150,000-gallon digester. The diffusers again blow out bubbles, which cause the wastewater to rise up. The separated water is returned back to the installation.

“Everything that is in this plant, if it goes down the drain, goes back to the beginning, starts the process all over again,” said Moffat.

The matter in the digester becomes thicker and thicker. It must remain there for at least 180 days before it is taken to an EPA-approved farm to be used as an agricultural fertilizer to help enrich the soil with nutrients. In September, 120,000 gallons of sludge were transported from the Mingo plant.

Meanwhile, clean water from the upwelling ditch is fed into the contact tank, a key area for EPA purposes. There, the water flows into a winding tunnel where chlorine is added to kill bacteria.

After flowing for 45 minutes, the water then enters a box where a proportionate amount of bisulfite is added to remove chlorine. Another composite sampler runs tests here, giving the plant a removal percentage.

After about 12 hours of treatment, the water is pumped directly into nearby Cross Creek, located upstream from the Mingo Junction Marina. According to Moffat, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, a small amount of chlorine is left in to keep algae growth to a minimum, although native fish are still happy and enjoying swimming around the pipe.

The plant’s efficiency is supported by Moffat’s IT expertise, which has developed software to store test results and other data related to incoming and outgoing flows. His computers were also synced between his home and facility so adjustments could be made remotely.

“Maintenance and Commitment” will also play a big role in the plant’s continued success, Moffat said. Staff keep the pipes clean regularly and thoroughly clean large tanks once a year. A shop vacuum cleaner is used to remove clogs that can be caused by flushable wipes. Moffat urged villagers not to use them as they could cause damage to homes and landscaping.

The department takes pride in maintaining its grounds and renovating buildings that have recently received a new coat of paint, Moffatt said.

In addition to the $5.2 million increase two years ago, the plant has received $860,000 from the village over the past five years, with funds used to upgrade equipment such as pumps, mixers and digester materials. Moffat credits the improvements to the previous village administration, which approved the investment.

“In general, everything was replaced,” said Moffat. “What you’re looking at now is essentially a brand new plant built in the last five years.”

He later added: “The main thing I want to emphasize is that the village allowed me to make all the improvements that I felt were needed, and they were completely supportive of everything that was done at this plant. … It’s almost new again because they let me do it.”

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