Infrastructure

Tertiary Nitrification: How Ammonia Is Removed From Wastewater

In our last post, we explained how plastic media filters remove contaminants during secondary treatment. Today we’re going to talk about the next level of treatment, which removes ammonia through a process called tertiary nitrification. As you can see from the picture above, it’s probably not what you imagine when you think of water treatment!…

Fire Hydrant Maintenance — Yup, We Do That, Too

LCA crews have been hard at work this summer, flushing, painting and repairing hydrants throughout the city of Allentown. Maintaining hydrants is an important and ongoing task. Our crews inspect and test over 900 hydrants every year so that they’re in peak condition in case the fire department needs them. We look for leaks, check…

The Sludge Report: What Happens After Treatment?

If 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

The 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…

Sludge 101: How Solids Are Removed From Wastewater

Ever 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

As 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

Did 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…

Pump it Up: The Role of LCA’s Giant Wastewater Movers

These 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?

For 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,…

Imagine a Day Without Water

Can you imagine a day without water? No water to drink, or even to make coffee with. No water to shower, flush the toilet, or do laundry. Hospitals would close. Firefighters couldn’t put out fires, and farmers couldn’t water their crops. A single nationwide day without water service would put $43.5 billion in economic activity…

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