KIMT News Three's Saral Khare shares how the city services we rely on every day will benefit.
ROCHESTER, Minn. - The Rochester City Council gave the green light to nearly $100,000,000 worth of upgrades to the water reclamation plant during their meeting on August 19th. high pruity oxygen plant
The renovations will make the plant more efficient at removing phosphorous.
Rochester Public Works Deputy Director Aaron Luckstein says they'll be shifting from a high-purity oxygen plant to a anaerobic treatment plant. The high-purity oxygen system uses chemicals to remove phosphorous, while anaerobic uses microorganisms which Luckstein says is more efficient.
"Phosphorous in the environment can lead to things like algae blooms," said Luckstein. "When algae then dies off, it can cause environmental issues for fish and wildlife. So it's very important that we remove as much of that phosphorous as possible."
He says more efficient and thorough purification process will allow for more reclaimed water usage.
"We want to make sure that we are able to reuse that water. One of the biggest components of it is we reuse it within the facility for wash water and things around here," said Luckstein. "But then also discharged into the environment so that it's safe for people to recreate."
The upgrades will make the plant more energy efficient. Right now, the plant converts cryogenic oxygen for their needs, which consumes a lot of electricity. After the plant is converted to aeration diffusers, Luckstein says their power consumption will be reduced.
"Anytime that you're creating energy it's going to produce negative impacts such as the less greenhouse emission gases and so the less energy that we use the less negative impact that those greenhouse gases are emitted into the environment," said Luckstein.
The project should be completed in December 2026. For more specifics about the water reclamation plant renovations, click here.
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