Project to fine-tune wastewater treatment

FORT COLLINS – A proposal to create a network of real-time water-monitoring instruments along the Poudre River could help the city of Fort Collins save money on its wastewater treatment costs and spotlight technology developed and produced by local companies.

Mazdak Arabi, associate professor in Colorado State University’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is proposing the city take part in a pilot project to reduce water utility costs by having a better picture of what’s coming downstream.

“The goal is to understand the hydraulics regime of the water so utilities can adjust their operations on a daily basis so they don’t treat more than they need to,” Arabi said.

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It’s a prospect that’s appealing to Kevin Gertig, the city’s water resources manager.

“We want to put some of these instruments in the field and monitor conditions all the way to the river’s headwaters up to Cameron (Pass),” he said. “We could have almost real-time data and monitor subtle changes never before realized in the watershed.”

Arabi notes that the Poudre River, with its relatively nearby headwaters above Fort Collins, is a good laboratory for studying river flows and pinpointing sources of mostly naturally occurring pollutants, such as phosphorous and nitrogen.

Gertig said the city now does “grab sample” testing of the river with field technicians collecting samples. But a system of monitoring equipment along the river to continuously sample the water quality would be a much more sophisticated approach, he noted.

“Why haven’t we done this before? Simply because the technology has not been available,” Gertig said. “The whole idea – and what’s so exciting – is it’s been a long dream by the city to get to this level. By getting these monitors we can realize subtle changes all the way up and down the line.”

Arabi said the pilot project would go from eight monitoring locations up to 21, which would ultimately cost an estimated $350,000 to $400,000. He said that investment could be repaid eight to 10 times over the next five years by reducing wastewater treatment costs.

Arabi said he’s hoping to start installing the monitors next month with the help of CSU engineering students and have the system in place by October.

Support needed

That’s going to depend on getting government support and financial and in-kind assistance from partners in the private sector, he said, noting that he’s received tentative commitments from Hach Co. and In-Situ for the first eight water monitors.

Arabi said the project offers educational opportunities for CSU students. “It would involve a significant number of engineering students,” he said. “This provides a platform for CSU students to train and assess real-time data for building their dissertations. It’s an incredible opportunity for CSU.”

Gertig said wastewater treatment is one of the city’s highest energy consumers – about 70 percent of the city’s electricity needs – and lowering energy use and reducing the city’s carbon footprint is a city priority.

But for the moment, the city can’t take on the cost of the project alone, he said.

“We need more private-public partnerships if we’re going to advance this technology in Northern Colorado,” he said.

Josh Birks, the city’s economic development advisor, said that’s the next step.

“It’s conceptual at this point but it’s gaining traction,” he said. “We’re trying to figure out how to fund the project and gaining partners to do it.”

Birks said one logical partner would be the Colorado Water Innovation Cluster, which includes dozens of local companies and organizations involved in some way in the water industry.

Birks said the project could help shine a spotlight on local companies that participate in it. And that could ultimately stimulate economic development, he noted.

“What I see this doing is being an enabling platform for companies to succeed, to have a laboratory to prove their products – and that’s where we could get the jobs benefit,” he said.

Arabi said the pilot project is part of the Water Innovation Network, a partnership he’s developing with CSU, local government and the water cluster. WIN’s goal is to create a “truly integrated collaboration” that would seek to “advance the development, demonstration and commercialization of clean water technologies,” he said.

Arabi said a successful WIN pilot project could help the region’s economy in many ways.

“I think this is a great opportunity for the people of Colorado,” he said. “It’s focused on creating infrastructure that attracts new companies, lets existing companies spotlight their equipment and helps CSU students. And it really benefits government agencies to be good stewards of the environment and better manage their resources.”

Steve Porter covers agribusiness and natural resources for the Northern Colorado Business Report. He can be reached at 970-232-3147 or at sporter@ncbr.com.