CHRIS LUBICICH, PE, SCDHS
BORIS RUKOVETS, PE, SCDPW
JUNE 6, 2015
Peconic Green Growth’s NoFo BLUE + GREEN Event
SUFFOLK COUNTY
195 WWTPs
- 152 - Private
- 23 - County
- 20 - other Municipal & Industrial
26% Sewered /
74% Unsewered (onsite systems)
Alternative treatment technologies approved by SCDHS as capable of achieving TN of 10 mg/l for systems between 1,000 gpd and 15,000 gpd:
-BESST; SBR; MBR; Chromaglass; NitrexTM; Aqua Point – Bioclere;
WesTech – STM-Aerotor
Alternative treatment technologies for systems < 1,000 gpd with > 50% TN removal are being studied by I/A OWTS Demonstration Program
2
GARDINERSISLAND
BLOCK ISLAND SOUND
GARDINERS BAY
BAY
PECONIC
BAY
LITTLE
PECONIC
LONG ISLAND SOUND
GREAT
SHINNECOCK BAY
FLANDERS BAY
M ORICHES BAY
GREAT SOUTH BAY
FIRE ISLAND
SM ITHTOWN BAY
20
miles
100
Sewage Treatment Plants and Sewer Districts
Suffolk County, New York
SUFFOLK COUNTY (cont.)
Ten Towns
- 5 Eastern (Babylon, Brookhaven, Huntington, Islip, Smithtown)
- 5 Western (East Hampton, Riverhead, Shelter Island, Southampton, Southold)
3
Why the Fuss? ~1.5 million people, >900 sq miles/600,000 acres Mostly unsewered (>70% of population)
Vulnerable sole source aquifer Diffuse public water supply well network (>1,000 wells) Often relatively shallow (upper glacial aquifer) >40,000 private wells Nitrogen, VOCs, pesticides, pharm./pcp’s, pathogens
Wetlands, surface waters, 3 major estuary systems Groundwater and surface waters are connected All Suffolk estuary systems impaired by NITROGEN Peconics, South Shore Estuary Reserve, Long Island Sound Eutrophication and low dissolved oxygen Mounting evidence suggesting linkage to harmful algal blooms Key factor for wetlands, eelgrass and coastal resiliency
4
Suffolk County’s Water Quality Crisis
5
Suffolk County Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan
Findings: - Dramatic Decline in Health of Ground and Surface Waters - Negative Trends in Quality of Drinking Water - Pollution has caused harmful Algal Blooms, Brown Tide - Impacts include nitrification, impaired water bodies, impaired rivers, closed beaches and devastation of shellfish industry
In aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, it is clear that this significant decline in water quality is a major threat to our region. Nitrogen is public enemy #1
6
Harmful Algal Blooms
“While we had hoped we could simply plant seagrass and clams to bring back our bays,” said Carl LoBue, Senior Scientist for the Nature Conservancy, “2013 has taught us that these efforts will only be successful if we can get nitrogen loads under control.”
7
360,000 unsewered homes in Suffolk County
• 74% of all homes in Suffolk County are unsewered • The National Environmental Services Center’s historic reference information
indicates that Suffolk County leads the State (and Tri-State region) in the number of individual septic systems, followed by Dutchess County [51,480] and Ulster County [41,927]
Septic Tanks/Leaching Pools in Suffolk County
~80 mg/l TN
~40-50 mg/l mg/l TN
Ammonia converted to Nitrate
8
9
Nitrogen Sources in the Great South Bay
atmospheric deposition
21%
sewage treatment
plants 1%
septic/ cesspool systems
69%
agriculture 1%
lawns 7%
golf courses 1%
(source: Kinney, E.L. and Valiela, 2011)
10
209,000 Parcels In Priority Areas for Advanced Wastewater Treatment
Nitrogen levels (TN) increasing since 1987 in all aquifers, by ~ 1 mg/l
Avg TN in public water supplies still ~2-4 mg/l (well below MCL of 10)
>98% meet 10 mg/l standard before treatment; 87%<6 mg/l.
Major concerns:
– Surface waters (guideline ~ 0.5 mg/l)
– Private wells (~10% exceed standard)
– Agricultural & unsewered areas (lots <0.5 ac predating Sanitary Code)
Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan Major Nitrogen Findings
Nearly 10% of samples exceed MCL
SCDHS Evaluation of Nitrates in Public Water Supply Wells Report - April 2014
13
Priorities
Suffolk County has identified three priorities for addressing the decline in water quality and the
restoration of our coastal wetlands:
1. Fortify our existing wastewater infrastructure:
Suffolk County’s largest sewage treatment plant, Bergen Point, was close to being compromised during Superstore Sandy. Serving 80,000 households, it is a critical facility.
Suffolk County has previously requested $242 million to replace the plant’s ocean outfall pipe that runs beneath the Great South Bay.
2. Sewer targeted areas:
Removing nitrogen loadings discharged each day into major tributaries which flow directly into the Great South Bay, will prevent further decline of critical coastal vegetation and provide the foundation to restore estuary and bay marshlands.
Suffolk County has identified four priority sub-regions to target:
• Carlls River
• Forge River
• Connetquot River
• Patchogue River
3. Pilot alternative/innovative on-site wastewater treatment systems;
Initiate demonstration project to assist homeowners with improved on-site systems.
Initiate projects for the installation of community-scale innovative/alternative wastewater treatment systems for clusters homes.
State of Maryland
New Jersey Pinelands
State of Rhode Island
Barnstable County, Massachusetts
Available online: http://www.suffolkcountyny.gov/Portals/0/planning/general/Septic_Rd_Shw_FINAL4-28-14.pdf
Area Population
Suffolk County, NY 1,499,273
State of Maryland 5,928,814
NJ Pinelands 870,000
State of Rhode Island 1,051,511
Barnstable County, MA 214,990
Area Land Area (square Miles) Persons per square mile,
2010
Suffolk County, NY 912 1,637
State of Maryland 9,707 595
NJ Pinelands 1,449 600
State of Rhode Island 1,034 1,018
Barnstable County, MA 394 549
Population of Jurisdictions Visited
Land Area vs. Persons per square mile
15
SuffolkCounty,
NY
State ofMaryland
NJPinelands
State ofRhodeIsland
CapeCod, MA
# of Septic Systems 360,000 420,000 22,000 150,000 123,000
050,000
100,000150,000200,000250,000300,000350,000400,000450,000
# o
f S
ep
ti S
yst
em
s
Number of Septic Systems In the Areas Visited vs. Suffolk County
Note: The NJ Pinelands is a small area within NJ
16
State ofMaryland
NJPinelands
State ofRhodeIsland
BarnstableCounty,
MA
State ofMass.
(IncludingBarnstable
County)
# N-Reducing Septic Systems 5,500 236 5,809 1,600 3,200
01,0002,0003,0004,0005,0006,0007,000
# o
f N
itro
gen
Re
du
cin
g Sy
ste
ms
Inst
alle
d
Number of Nitrogen Reducing Septic Systems Installed In the Areas Visited
17
Region Visited N Effluent Requirement for Alt. Systems
State of Maryland 30 mg/l
NJ Pinelands Reduction Based on model to maintain
2 mg/l at property line
State of Rhode Island 19 mg/l
Barnstable County, MA 19 mg/l
Nitrogen Effluent Requirement for I/A OWTS
18
REQUEST FOR EXPRESSED INTEREST IN:
A DEMONSTRATION OF INNOVATIVE ALTERNATIVE ONSITE WASTEWATER
TREATMENT SYSTEMS IN SUFFOLK COUNTY
ISSUED: April 14, 2014
Application Due Date: May 16, 2014 (by 12:00 p.m. Noon)
“Suffolk County is seeking applications […] from manufacturers from throughout the nation for the opportunity to showcase and demonstrate single family residential onsite wastewater treatment system technologies in Suffolk County—at no cost to the County or participating homeowners — in an effort to test these systems in local conditions.”
Conditions of the RFEI:
• I/A OWTS (up to five per system) to be provided by the manufacturer free of charge
• All maintenance and warranty costs for five years, with the exception of
electric, to be borne by the manufacturer • All cost of installation to be borne by the manufacturer • Systems need to be certified to National Sanitation Foundation (NSF)
245 standards to be eligible for “fast track” field testing
• Monthly sampling for BOD, TSS and Total Nitrogen (six month required for “fast track” provisional approval), followed by quarterly sampling for the following 18 months
• Systems must be capable of removing 50% nitrogen as compared to effluent from a standard septic tank.
BUSSE Green
Technologies, Inc. Busse MF Membrane Bio Reactor 2 Systems
Hydro-Action
Industries AN series
Extended Aeration
Activated Sludge 5 Systems
Norweco, Inc. Singulair TNT
Extended Aeration
Activated Sludge 5 systems
Hydro-Kinetic
Extended Aeration
Activated Sludge with
effluent filter 5 systems
Orenco Systems, Inc. AdvanTex-AX-RT
attached growth packed
bed reactor 1 System
AdvanTex-AX
attached growth packed
bed reactor 1 System
Systems Selected for the Program:
Systems Selected for the Demonstration Program (cont.):
1.1 ORENCO AdvanTex AX-20RT 1.2 ORENCO AdvanTex AX20
2.1 NORWECO Singulair TNT
3. BUSSE MF
2.2 NORWECO Hydro-Kinetic
4. HYDRO-ACTION AN SERIES
Comp Plan Key Recommendations: Nitrates 1.1 Create & expand sewers district for communities identified as priority areas
1.2 Identify I/A OWTS options for homeowners
1.3 Develop funding/financing for voluntary homeowner upgrades (short-term) & possible mandatory upgrades (long-term) to achieve location-specific criteria
1.4 Promote local industry interest in I/A OWTS
1.5 Determine wastewater treatment technology options by sub-watershed
1.6 Evaluate revision of the Sanitary Code to prohibit the "grandfathering" of sanitary flows without an I/A OWTS or connection to sewers
1.7 Evaluate feasibility of revision of the Sanitary Code to prohibit “replacement in-kind” of failed systems
1.8 Establish Responsible Management Entity to guide wastewater treatment technology implementation
1.9 Facilitate conditions for decentralized sewer districts
1.10 Maintain compliance with 10 mg/l TN effluent at Sewage Treatment Plants
1.11 Continue to reduce N load from homeowner fertilizer applications
1.12 Evaluate feasibility of replicating Riverhead STP re-use of effluent for golf course irrigation
Other Recent Accomplishments
25
IBM Smart Cities Report
CrapSHOOT Film Festival
Peconic Green Growth Cluster Feasibility Study (ongoing)
Suffolk County ASRF ¼% - cluster decentralized demos pending
NYS and DEC Wastewater Support
Report on Nitrogen Pollution and Coastal Resiliency $383 Million NYS Funding Award to sewer approx. 10,000 properties
WASTEWATER PLAN ROADMAP (2015-16)
26
• Recommended means of wastewater treatment for each parcel • GIS mapping-based; upgrade groundwater model
• Future loads/impacts based on alternatives • Tiered priorities based on subwatersheds
• Sensitivity of receiving waters to loads (surface water assessment) • Attainment of standards or guidelines (D.O., eelgrass, etc.) • Cost-benefit curves may assist
• Pilot communities for preliminary design and costing (extrapolation)
• Model and plan should consider alternatives and other reductions
• Possible funding sources and implementation mechanisms
• Coordinate initiatives with Long Island Sound Study, Peconic Estuary Program and South Shore Estuary Reserve Council