Waterworks Blog
When You Clean Your Car, Keep Our Waterways Clean, Too
July 2, 2019It’s that time of year when many of us grab a hose, a rag and a bucket of soapy water to give our cars a good scrub. And while it’s great to find out your vehicle really isn’t that shade of muddy-gray you’ve gotten so used to seeing, washing your car yourself comes with a…
The Sludge Report: What Happens After Treatment?
June 19, 2019If you’re a regular visitor, you’ll know we’ve been doing a series of posts explaining how wastewater is treated. In our last post, we talked about why it needs to be treated — and what happens when it’s not. Today, we’re going to discuss one of the byproducts of treatment: sewage sludge. Sewage sludge is a…
Kline’s Island Gets New Electrical Substation as Part of Infrastructure Update
May 14, 2019The new Kline’s Island substation, above, includes provisions for additional power demands in the future. It’s National Infrastructure Week — a time to #BuildForTomorrow and “highlight the state of our nation’s infrastructure – roads, bridges, rail, ports, airports, water and sewer systems, the energy grid, telecoms, and more.” We usually think of water infrastructure…
Why Does Wastewater Need to be Treated?
May 1, 2019Above, untreated wastewater pollutes a waterway in India. If you’ve been following along, you’ll know we’ve been doing a series of posts explaining how wastewater is treated. In our last one, we talked about how solids are removed from wastewater, then sent to the primary settling tanks for stabilization and treatment. What we haven’t covered…
Sludge 101: How Solids Are Removed From Wastewater
April 5, 2019Ever been curious about how water gets to your tap? Ever wonder what happens after you flush the toilet? Join us for our series of semi-regular posts in which to try to demystify the process. This is our fourth in the series. In our last post, we talked about the screening process — how we get…
Wastewater Treatment Starts with Screening Out Items That Don’t Belong
March 14, 2019As long as everything works the way it’s intended, most of us take for granted the water and wastewater services we use every day. But have you ever been curious about how water gets to your tap? Ever wonder what happens after you flush the toilet? Through a series of semi-regular posts, we’re going to…
Clean and Green: How Waste is Turned into Energy at Kline’s Island
February 27, 2019Did you know that bacteria are hard at work producing between 35 and 50 percent of the electricity required to treat Allentown’s wastewater? That’s because they’re helping create renewable energy used to fuel a biogas generator, which in turn supplies electricity and heat at LCA’s Kline’s Island Wastewater Treatment Plant. Here’s how it works: Biogas…
Don’t Forget Hydrants When Clearing Snow
January 30, 2019Few people like clearing snow, but it’s a must to keep sidewalks and driveways safe and passable. While many of us focus just on clearing a space for our car and the area in front of our residence, please don’t forget something else that’s just as important, but often overlooked: the area around hydrants….
Pump it Up: The Role of LCA’s Giant Wastewater Movers
January 18, 2019These gigantic machines are three of LCA’s six main sewage pumps, used in our wastewater treatment process. The pumps convey wastewater to the Aerated Grit chambers — the second part of the treatment process. (The first is screening, which removes larger objects — things like feminine hygiene products and disposable wipes, which shouldn’t be flushed anyway!) Aerated…
Did You Know Rainstorms Change the Water Treatment Process?
January 4, 2019For most people, rain in the forecast is usually little more than a mild inconvenience. But at LCA, we have to watch that forecast very carefully, because rain affects how we treat and supply your water. We need to know how much we are getting, when it’s supposed to arrive, how long it should last,…