Working for Clean Water
An Information Program for Advisory Groups
Wastewater Facilities
Operation and
Management
What is Operation and Management (O&M)?
What does O&M cost?
Who pays for the O&M of sewage plants?
What are the federal O&M requirements for sewage plants?
What are the major O&M problem areas?
Citizen Handbook
-------
This program was prepared by
The Pennsylvania State University
Institute of State & Regional
Affairs
Middletown, PA 17057
Dr. Charles A. Cole
Project Director
Dr. E. Drannon Buskirk, Jr.
Project Co-Director
Prof. Lorna Chr. Stoltzfiis
Editor
This unit was prepared by
David A. Long
Advisory Team for the Project
David Elkinton, State of West
Virginia
Steve Frishman, private citizen
Michele Frome, private citizen
John Hammond, private citizen
Joan Jurancich, State of California
Richard Hetherington, EPA
Region 10
Rosemary Henderson, EPA
Region 6
George HoesseL, EPA Region 3
George Neiss, EPA Region 5
Ray Pfortner, EPA Region 2
Paul Pinault, EPA Region 1
Earlene Wilson, EPA Region 7
Dan BurrowB, EPA Head
Ben Gryctko, EPA Headquarters
Robert Hardaker, EPA
Headquarters
Charles Kauffinan, EPA
Headquarters
Steve Maier, EPA Headquarters
EPA Project Officer
Barry H. Jordan
Office of Water Programs
Operations
Acknowledgements
Typists:
Ann Kirsch, Jan Russ, Tess
Startoni
Student Assistants:
Fran Costanzi, Kathy DeBatt,
Michael Lapano, Mike Moulds,
Terry Switzer
Illustrator
Charles Speers
Graphics support was provided by
the Office of Public Awareness,
U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency.
Photographs were provided by
USDA - Soil Conservation Service
and Zimpro, Inc.
-------
Waste water Facilities
Operation and Management
O & M—What is It?
O & M traditionally has meant "operation
and maintenance" to people associated
with water quality management and
facility planning. A more appropriate
meaning for O & M is "Operation and
Management". Most of us are familiar with
the need for O & M in daily living
activities, including:
• Operating and managing a household
with budgeting
• Operating and maintaining appliances
and automobiles
• Painting and making repairs necessary
to protect investments in physical
structures, such as a house
• Engaging in health care activities such
as annual medical and dental checkups.
All of these activities require proper
management to achieve our goals in family
living. Likewise, in order to achieve our
goals in water quality management, we
must make certain that O & M
considerations at wastewater treatment
facilities receive our earliest attention in
the planning process.
The advisory group can assure that
these matters receive the attention they
deserve. The most perfectly designed
system will not work if it is not
maintained!
What Does O & M Cost?
Of course operation and management costs
money, but in the long run it is a wise
investment. Good O&M protects
investments in expensive treatment plant
equipment and structures.
Why are these fish dying or already dead?
Just a few scant months ago the area was
ideal for sport fishing. Who or what was
responsible?
Yes, these fish were killed by the local
municipal wastewater treatment plant.
The investigator's record reported . . .
"Equipment malfunction." What really
happened?
That's right. Poor operation and
management of the treatment plant was
the real killer, by allowing the discharge
of a toxic effluent into waters where
fishing formerly had been good. The cost to
the community was a $15,000 fine plus the
value of the fish . . . not to mention a
degraded environment.
A similar situation occurred at a treatment
plant that was hopelessly overloaded. It
required an unbudgeted emergency
expenditure of $35,000 to make corrections
to equipment. What was the real cause of
failure? This time city officials were
blamed. They failed to enforce an existing
sewer use ordinance.
-------
By contrast, consider a well-run plant that
removes 85 to 90 percent of suspended
solids from wastewater, while undergoing a
25 percent overload at the same time! This
accomplishment is achieved by
well-trained, professional operators. Local
officials and citizens must realize that the
evidence at hand proves that proper
operation and management of a wastewater
treatment facility are not extra cost items.
Rather, they more than pay their own way!
We must never lose sight of the fact that
properly trained professional wastewater
treatment operators and technicians are
key components in any water pollution
control system!
Several years ago, the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) engaged an
independent business consulting firm to
conduct a detailed survey of the
measurable effects of operator training.
Summing up the findings of the report, one
of the authors made these observations:
• While the report is limited in scope, it
clearly establishes the salutary effect of
operator training on plant performance
• The public return on investment in this
training is a little short of astounding. As
Local Expenditures for
Wastewater Collection and Treatment
1980
calculated for Texas plants, for every dollar
invested in training, the public has received
$91 in measurable return.
The survey acknowledges that training
probably increases the cost of operations
and routine maintenance which are funded
out of local funds. Therefore, by itself,
training may not be an appealing
investment to local decision makers.
However, in light of the heavy fines for
substandard, noncompliant plant operation,
training which moves a plant into
compliance will provide a sound
investment.
The survey found, also, that the benefits of
training were clearly obvious in
maintaining consistently high performance
at already successful wastewater treatment
plants, as well as improving performance
at the less successful, or substandard
plants. At 19 Texas facilities, the removal
of BOD and suspended solids improved in a
range of 112 percent to 334 percent as a
result of operator training.
It rapidly is becoming apparent to
municipal, state, and other officials
responsible for water pollution control that
an improvement in operator efficiency will
have one major, desirable effect - an
upgrading and improvement in the overall
quality of our waterways.
A plant properly operated and managed
will pay off in prolonging the life of the
facility, which should provide tremendous
savings to the community.
Who Pays for O & M?
Who pays for O&M?
We do! Or at least the community does.
Congress has mandated that it is the local
government's responsibility, not the federal
government's, to keep a waste treatment
facility operating. Once constructed, the
facility belongs to the municipality. The
EPA then has only a regulatory role
through an effluent discharge permit
system.
The costs of operating treatment plants are
increasing rapidly as a result of higher
treatment requirements and increased
costs for energy and chemicals. The
community is responsible for these
operation and management costs.
-------
O & M and the Law
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act of
1972 (PL 92-500) as amended by the Clean
Water Act of 1977 (PL 95-217) addresses
O & M in several sections.
The awarding of a construction grant, as
provided by Section 204, is conditioned
upon the grantee's assurance that the new
plant will be operated and maintained
properly. Among the steps required under
this Section are:
• Preparing a complete plan of operation,
approved by the state water pollution
control agency, which lays out a detailed
schedule for timely action on adequate
staffing, training, and budgeting to assure
effective start up and continued operation
of the facility
« Establishing a user charge system to
provide adequate funding for annual
O & M costs, including replacement.
The implementing regulations for the
construction grants program contain
requirements designed to assure proper
O & M of treatment facilities constructed
with grant funds.
Additionally, Section 210 of the Act
requires that an annual survey be made
and reported to Congress on the actual
performance of federally-funded plants.
These surveys indicate that one third of
the plants inspected appear not to be
meeting their design criteria for removal of
BOD and suspended solids. Also the
effluent from approximately one half of
both new and existing treatment plants
presently are not meeting satisfactory
levels of secondary treatment.
At present, there is no requirement for an
independent review of the operation and
management elements of facility plans.
However, EPA is considering such a "third
party" review prior to facility plan
approval. Additionally, the EPA has
proposed that Step 1 (facility planning)
plans be reviewed to determine whether or
not a proposed new facility is really
needed, or whether the existing facility or
a modified version of it will accomplish the
same water quality management
objectives.
O & M Considerations in
Planning
Proper planning for water quality
management must address 0 & M very
early on. Everyone must recognize that the
total burden of paying the continuing costs
of O & M rests solely on the residents to be
served by the plant. Early public
involvement in facility planning can help to
get this point across. Also, through effective
public involvement, more citizens may come
to view their wastewater treatment facilities
as a resource and an asset to the
community. Community pride in a facility
can lead to proper O & M.
The advisory group can see to it that
the following are addressed in the
planning process:
• Survey and inventory of O & M
problems in existing plants in the area
• Development of action plans and
institutional arrangements to solve
identified problems
• Development of good O & M plans
for the new facility
• Study of ways to ensure continued
attention to O & M
• Integration of small systems
management with that of central
facilities
-------
o Contracts 'with firms which specialize
in the operation of wastcwater facilities
to manage the local plant.
Knowledge of local conditions can be
very helpful.
Indicators of Good O & M
Many aspects of sewage treatment plant
O & M are too technical for an untrained
person to understand or even be aware of.
However, there are some general indicators
of good O & M practices which are
apparent even to untrained observers.
The advisory group cam form am initial
impression of existing O & M practices
to help guide the evaluation of O & M.
Visit plants as a start!
On these visits persons can assess the
attractiveness of the general environment,
work conditions, and the appearance of
surface waters below the plant discharge
pipe.
Major O & M Challenges
The National Operational and
Maintenance Cause-and-Effect Survey
conducted by EPA shows that good
performance of wastewater treatment
plants is possible. The survey evaluated
details on the system and unit process
performances, operation and maintenance
practices, and administrative procedures of
O & M at existing treatment plants.
The following sections discuss some of the
major factors found to cause poor plant
performance.
Process Control Actions
Process control refers to those actions
taken by an operator to adjust a treatment
process in order to improve its efficiency. It
is the leading cause of poor performance at
a number of plants. This problem occurs
when:
o A trained operator, in a well-designed
plant, does not operate the plant as
efficiently as possible
o The operator makes incorrect control
adjustments or incorrect control test
interpretations
o Poorly designed or inadequate parts of
the treatment process are continued,
instead of using different operations or
modifying the plant for improved
performance.
The lack of testing and control often was
caused by the failure of operators to apply
learned techniques. Motivation by
wastewater treatment plant supervisors is
the key.
Process Control Testing Procedures
Inadequate process control testing means
that information needed for process
monitoring and operation control either is
wrong or not available. This deficiency
leads to poor decisions. In many cases,
important measurements which must be
used to operate processes properly were not
even made. Good laboratories, personnel,
and sampling equipment are necessary to
gather adequate data on which to make
operational decisions.
Plant Performance
® What kind of performance record
does the existing plant have?
© Is the plant achieving or exceeding
the standards set by the design
criteria?
o Is the plant being operated in the
most energy efficient manner?
Process Control Monitoring
o Does the plant have its own
laboratory?
o What kind of sampling and testing
program exists?
9 The NPDES permit system requires
frequent self-testing and reporting;
how is this requirement being met?
© What sources and types of wastes
are treated by the plant?
® Does runoff from rain and snow
melt leak into sewers?
-------
Infiltration/Inflow
Infiltration/Inflow (I/I) refers to water
which enters the sewers as a result of
leakage of groundwater (infiltration) or
rainwater (inflow) into the sewers. I/I was
a major problem in a majority of the
treatment plants included in the survey.
The problem exists in the sewer collection
system, but its effect on treatment plant
operations cannot be ignored. Location of
I/I sources and repair of the leaks is
important!
Inadequate Understanding
of Wastewater Treatmemt
This problem is defined as a lack of
knowledge by the operational staff. A
knowledge of wastewater treatment is
needed if an operator is to do more than
just keep the equipment operating.
Education and training is the key to
efficient operations.
The advisory group shouild erasure that
needed education and trainimg will be
provided at the proper time.
Education and Training
• How large is the plant's staff?
• Does the plant have a full-time
operator?
• Who actually hires plant personnel?
• What qualifications are required?
• Are operators certified by the state?
• How are employees trained for
their jobs?
• Are opportunities for continuing
training provided?
• What are the differences in staff
salaries and skills needed by
treatment plants?
Technical Guidance
In far too many instances, improper
technical guidance has been provided to
plant operational staffs from
"authoritative" sources such as design
engineers, state and federal regulatory
agency personnel, equipment suppliers,
and operator training staff. This factor
may well be one of the most difficult to
overcome because of the lack of people
experienced in plant O & M. The
community must support the plants by
hiring persons trained to interpret data and
operate the equipment. Inadequately trained
personnel cannot be expected to perform
high quality tasks. Good people demand
competitive salaries.
Ease of Comtrol amid Adaptability
Plants vary as to the use of process control
and ability to adapt to changing conditions.
These factors are related to the plant
design. They are extremely important
considerations because changes in
wastewater flows and waste characteristics
require that changes be made in operation
of the treatment units. Facility planning
must take into account the need for varying
operation. Plans for handling toxic material
spills and other emergencies also must be
developed.
Other Causes
Other causes of poor O & M performance
include ineffective O & M instruction
manuals, unsatisfactory maintenance
programs, inadequate budgeting support
for O & M, and improper facilities design
and construction.
It is important to note that in all of the
plants included in the cause-and-effect
survey, a combination of factors always
limited performance. No single cause of
poor performance at any one facility was
ever observed. There is a relationship
between the reasons for poor performance
and adjustments needed to improve O & M.
Most existing programs for correcting poor
performance focus on single problems only.
Therefore, a new approach which addresses
all problems at a particular facility is
needed. This approach should be spelled
out early in the facility planning process so
that appropriate action can be taken at
each step along the way.
All aspects of facility planning should be
reviewed for O & M impacts. For example,
multiple use programs can be of
tremendous benefit to O & M. Besides
stimulating better housekeeping and
efficient operations, multiple use
involvement builds a support base for
O & M budgets.
-------
The performance of wastewater treatment
systems often may be improved simply and
inexpensively by:
o Upgrading operation and maintenance
programs
o Giving more attention to management
and administrative requirements
o Making low cost corrections of design
deficiencies where they exist.
Summary
Plans and Procedures
o What type of maintenance system is in
use? Is it a preventive system, or does it
merely respond to breakdowns?
o What type of maintenance system is in
use? Is it a preventive system, or does it
merely respond to breakdowns?
o Is there an operation and
maintenance manual written
especially for the existing plant? Do
the operators use it? Will there be one
for the new plant?
o Who will set the yearly operation
and maintenance budget for the
plant? Is the money collected for
water service and sewer use charges
to be set aside to finance water
quality activities, or will it be placed
in the community's treasury for
general use?
Is there an emergency plan for
spills of toxic materials, floods, loss of
power, etc.?
Better operation and management (O & M)
means cleaner water, but attention to
O & M pays off even more. It saves money,
too! It protects the huge investment that a
community makes when it builds a
wastewater treatment plant by helping to
get the most out of it.
Many existing wastewater treatment
plants do not meet their design and permit
requirements. EPA surveys show that the
major problems with these plants were
caused by O & M failures. The most
common problems are:
o Improper operation by inadequately
trained operators
o Inadequate laboratory testing
o Inadequate general maintenance
o Temporary mechanical breakdowns.
Unless a treatment plant is overloaded
with more wastewater or stronger wastes
than it is designed to handle, most
problems can be solved by improving
O & M performance.
Municipal officials and the public have
three responsibilities for good operation and
management of the treatment plant:
o Setting up a management system to
establish proper control of collection and
treatment systems
o Providing well qualified, well trained,
properly certified, and adequately
compensated people at all levels to operate
the system properly
o Allotting sufficient funding to do the job.
Mainly, good O & M boils down to
recognition by the owners of the value of a
good manager and good O & M personnel.
They must recognize that these people are
the most important link in good facilities
performance.
The advisory group must see that these
matters are addressed im the plarammg
off the facility.
-------
Case Study
Contract Management of O & M
Wausau, Wisconsin
Adapted from "The Wausau Connection: O & M Contract Help* I.
Sewer Moratorium.." Reactor. Zimpro, Inc., February 1979. p. 13.
ifl
A private operations and maintenance contract has helped
Wausau, Wisconsin, run off many consecutive months of
effluent permit compliance, and resume sewer connections
to newly annexed areas.
Repeated effluent violations during 1976 and 1977 had
brought legal action against the city by the Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources. The Department of
Natural Resources also had placed a moratorium on new
connections to the Wausau sanitary sewer system,
delaying the city's plans to expand residential and
industrial development. Some $230,000 worth of sanitary
sewer work had been frozen.
In April, 1978, Wausau signed a one-year, renewable
supervisory 0 & M contract with a private contractor.
Within 90 days, the plant began meeting its discharge
permit limits of 30 milligrams per liter suspended solids
and BOD. By December, the plant had run off six
consecutive months of effluent compliance. As 1979 began,
the Department of Natural Resources and the city of
Wausau had settled the law suit and the sewer connection
moratorium had been lifted.
Here's How They Did It
"We were having real problems at the plant," said
Wausau Mayor John Kannenberg. "We've had to put
money into plant improvements, but we're very pleased
with the results of the private management contract. It's
produced results." Achievements accomplished during this
tenure include:
• The contract enabled existing plant operators to retain
their positions. The contractor provided a plant manager,
chief operator, and operator, and laboratory technician.
• A full plant preventive maintenance plan was
instituted, and a card system was set up for inventory and
spare parts.
• Training programs in plant operations, maintenance,
and safety were undertaken.
• A system of monthly reports to the utility and
regulatory agencies was initiated, and plant progress was
reported regularly to the local media.
• Major items of equipment in need of repair or
replacement were identified and reported.
• Defective sludge digesters were emptied, cleaned, and
repaired. Major repair work on sewage influent pumps,
comminutor, and grit removal equipment was completed.
• Primary and secondary clarifiers, and chlorine contact
chambers were emptied and cleaned.
• Plant hiring procedures were examined. Three
additional wastewater operator positions were defined,
negotiated through the municipal personnel structure and
local union, and eventually filled.
• A program of monitoring discharge from septic tank
service trucks, and charging a users' fee was set up.
• The city and its consulting engineering firm drafted and
began to enforce guidelines for industrial discharges into
the sewer system.
-------
Selected Resources
Need More
Information?
Continuing Need for Improved Operations and Maintenance of Municipal Wastewater
Treatment Plants. Report to Congress by the Comptroller General of the United States.
CED-77-46. Washington, DC: U.S. General Accounting Office, April 11, 1977. 75 pp.
This report discusses the continuing need for improved operation and
maintenance of municipal wastewater treatment plants constructed under
grants awarded by the Environmental Protection Agency. Single copies may be
ordered free of charge from Documents Handling, Box 6015, Gaithersburg,
Maryland 20760. Specify order number CED-77-46.
Hill, William R., Regan Terry M. and Zickefoose, Charles S. "Operation and
Maintenance of Water Pollution Control Facilities: A WPCF White Paper." Water
Pollution Control Federation Journal. Vol. 51, no. 5. May 1979. pp. 899-906.
This article outlines the major problem areas affecting O & M as determined by
a committee of the Water Pollution Control Federation. The paper also presents
constructive recommendations for bringing O & M into compliance. There is a
specific section which addresses the role that the owners and the public can play
in this endeavor. Single copies may be ordered free of charge from the Water
Pollution Control Federation, 2626 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington,
DC 20037.
Glossary
Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)—
amount of dissolved oxygen required in the
biological breakdown of organic matter in
water.
Chlorine Contact Chamber—tank in which
chlorine is added to treated wastewater for the
purpose of disinfection.
Comminutor—grinds up large objects in the
raw wastewater entering a sewage treatment
plant.
Effluent—treated or untreated wastewater
discharged into the environment.
Grit Removal—a stage of primary treatment
during which sand, cinders, and small stones
are removed from wastewater by settling out.
Infiltration/Inflow (I/I)—leakage of ground
and surface waters into sewers.
Influent—the raw wastewater entering a
sewage treatment plant or in more general
terms, the flow entering some process unit.
Multiple Use—utilization of wastewater
treatment facilities for other functions in
addition to wastewater treatment, such as for
recreational and educational purposes.
Primary Clarifier—sedimentation tank used
for removing settleable solids during primary
treatment.
Sanitary Sewer—collection system which
carries wastewater produced in homes and
industry; a separate collection system carries
stormwater runoff.
Secondary Clarifier—sedimentation tank
used for removal of settleable solids and scum
created during secondary treatment.
Secondary Treatment—wastewater
processing that results in an effluent with 30
mg/L or less of BOD or suspended solids.
Sludge Digester—heated tank where
wastewater solids can decompose biologically
and the odors can be controlled.
Suspended Solids (SS)—small particles of
solid pollutants in sewage that cause cloudiness
and require special treatment to remove.
8
-------
Working for Clean Water is a
program designed to help advisory
groups improve decision making in
water quality planning It aims at
helping people focus on essential
issues and questions by providing
trained instructors and materials
suitable for persons with
non-technical backgrounds. These
materials include a citizen
handbook on important principles
and considerations about topics in
water quality planning, an
audiovisual presentation, and an
instructor guide for elaborating
points, providing additional
information, and engaging in
problem-solving exercises.
This program consists of 18
informational units on various
aspects of water quality planning:
• Role of Advisory Groups
• Public Participation
• Nonpoint Source Pollution:
Agriculture, Forestry, and Mining
• Urban Stormwater Runoff
• Groundwater Contamination
• Facility Planning in the
Construction Grants Program
• Municipal Wastewater Processes:
Overview
• Municipal Wastewater Processes:
Details
• Small Systems
• Innovative and Alternative
Technologies
• Industrial Pretreatment
• Land Treatment
• Water Conservation and Reuse
• Multiple Use
• Environmental Assessment
• Cost-Effectiveness Analysis
• Wastewater Facilities Operation
and Management
The units are not designed to
make technical experts out of
citizens and local officials. Each
unit contains essential facts, key
questions, advice on how to deal
with the issues, and
clearly-written technical
backgrounds. In short, each unit
provides the information that
citizen advisors need to better
fulfill their role.
This program is available through
public participation coordinators at
the regional offices of the United
States Environmental Protection
Agency. D
This information program was
financed with federal funds from
the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency under Cooperative
Agreement No. CT900980 01. The
information program has been
reviewed by the Environmental
Protection Agency and approved
for publication. Approval does not
signify that the contents
necessarily reflect the views and
policies of the Environmental
Protection Agency, nor does the
mention of trade names or
commercial products constitute
endorsement of recommendation
for use.O
This project is dedicated to the
memory of Susan A. Cole.
i Financial Management
------- |