E3 Solutions’ Success Case Study: Village Wastewater Treatment Plant, Lakeland FL

At E3 Solutions, our technology helps clients reduce costs, not only monetary but environmental costs as well. We are thrilled to see clients businesses improve from the use of our enhanced evaporation technology. 

In this blog post, we’d like to share with you the impressive results our client, Village WWTP, has seen with the use of our technology. 

The Challenge:

Village WWTP is currently under a settlement agreement that permits the plant to percolate 45,000 gallons of treated effluent per day. Through their treated effluent disposal ponds, which are permitted as rapid infiltration basins, this level of percolation is doable, at least under normal operating conditions. 

However, here in Florida, the weather is rarely ever “normal.” The rainy season will bring excess water into the ponds, which will exceed their percolation capacity. This will violate the Florida Governmental Utility Authority (FGUA) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) permits.

In other words, Village WWTP needs a plan to make their plant able to handle the excess rainwater that will fall into their treated effluent disposal ponds. The goal will be to reduce the volume of water in the ponds, in order to reduce the risk of overflow. 

Their Options:

Village WWTP had several options. 

1. Connect their current 45,000 GPD system to the City of Lakeland’s treatment facility, in order to help alleviate the excess rainwater. Cost to implement over $2,000,000. The City of Lakeland denied this particular project.
   
   
2. Acquire 10-20 acres of nearby land in order to connect a pipeline from the current treatment location to the newly acquired location. At the newly acquired location, they will implement a spray irrigation application to treat the effluent. Cost to implement over $500,000. The proximity of the land became an issue, as well as the cost of land, equipment, and operational expenses. Additionally, the spray irrigation would be limited to only 2” of land application per week.
   
   

3. Dredge the percolation ponds.  At a staggering cost of $700,000.00
   
   

4. Implement the use of E3 Solutions’ enhanced evaporation equipment to reduce the volume of water in the ponds. Cost to implement under $150,000. This option is the most cost-efficient, with the lowest capital expenditure and lowest operational expenditure. 

The Final Decision. 

The Florida Governmental Utility Authority’s engineering consulting firm, JonesEdmunds came out to take a look and consult with Village WWTP. JonesEdmunds came to the conclusion that implementing E3 Solutions’ enhanced evaporation equipment was the best option. 

And for more reasons than one: 

1. E3 Solutions’ evaporators warrant the performance of 7,000 GPD. That’s more than any other evaporation technology’s guaranteed level of performance.
   
   
   
2. The machine floats on top of the pond. It is not land-based, therefore, eliminating the potential for off-site drift.
3. The Varimax uses less power than any other evaporator.
4. The Varimax adjusts to wind conditions to reduce/eliminate drift.
5. It is immediately available in the anticipation of Florida’s rainy season.
   

We are happy to report that Village WWTP facility agreed with JonesEdmunds and decided to acquire our Varimax enhanced evaporation system. We are delighted to be a part of such a substantial project that has resulted in great success. 

See the success for yourself in the below video taken at Village WWTP.

If you are in a similar predicament at your wastewater treatment plant, give us a call. We’ll provide you with a free estimate and help you with all your wastewater needs.