The City of Pierre is modernizing its wastewater treatment plant, and one of the first steps to the overhaul is getting the right equipment.
The City Commission took that step tonight by selecting an array of specialized wastewater processing equipment based on the quality and price of the equipment.
“These are the tools that will be used to process the wastewater from the time it is received at the treatment plant until it is fully treated and discharged into the Missouri River,” said Nick Waters, Staff Engineer. “It’s a multi-step process, and each piece of that process has equipment needs.”
Not all of those needs have been met by the Commission’s action tonight. Proposals weren’t received for two pieces of the equipment.
“Those items will become part of the contracting process,” said Waters.
The City can now move forward with finding a contractor to handle the installation and construction.
“Think of it like remodeling a kitchen. You pick out the cabinets and flooring you want, but the contractor actually procures those materials and installs them,” said Waters. “In this case, the materials are specialized, so the contractor needs to know what, exactly, they’ll be working with.”
City staff is hopeful, they’ll be able to bid the construction work within the next month and have the existing decades-old systems fully modernized and construction complete in 2022.
The City of Pierre provides three primary utility services –electric, water, and wastewater. All three have either undergone or are in the process of undergoing major modernization. Just last year, the City finished up an eight-year upgrade to the City’s electrical substations and distribution infrastructure; the City’s new drinking water treatment facility is currently under construction; and this project at the wastewater treatment plant will usher in new technology to better serve the community.
The City’s wastewater treatment facility processes about 1.5 million gallons of wastewater each day.