Telluride Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant

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What is the Telluride Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (TRWWTP)?

The Telluride Wastewater Treatment Plant (TRWWTP) is a publicly owned water treatment facility that receives and treats wastewater from residences, businesses, and commercial enterprises such as hotels, restaurants, breweries, distilleries and car washes. Wastewater treatment uses a series of processes to remove pollutants and impurities from sewage to clean it before discharging to the San Miguel River.

Who does the Wastewater Treatment Plant serve?

The TRWWTP treats wastewater produced by Telluride, Mountain Village, Aldasoro Subdivision, Lawson Hill Subdivision, Hillside Subdivision, The Falls Subdivision, Eider Creek Condominiums, and Brown Homestead Condominiums in unincorporated San Miguel County through a sewage collection system.

Mountain Village participates jointly with the Town to provide financial support for operations and maintenance (O&M) of the facility. The TRWWTP also receives and treats septage dumping from Porta Pottys, Recreational Vehicles (RVs), industrial cleaning waste, and septic tanks from the greater Telluride region as a public service.

What’s “wrong” with the current WWTP?

The TRWWTP was originally built in 1987, with subsequent phases added in 1994 and 2002. A typical wastewater plant can have a life expectancy of 40-50 years with proper maintenance, however the treatment equipment typically only lasts 15 to 20 years.

  • The current challenges faced at the TRWWTP are aging infrastructure and failing equipment as expected at the current age of the wastewater plant.
  • High altitude and harsh weather can even lead to decreased life span and more specialized equipment.
  • The building itself is dealing with roof leaks that damages costly lab equipment and computers, outdated electrical wiring that frequently blows fuses and trips breakers, boiler leaks that forced staff to turn off heating inside the plant during winter, rodent infestations and droppings that cause health concerns, and a failing HVAC system that does not provide proper air ventilation.
  • These issues and concerns lead to increased safety concerns for staff and their health while working at the wastewater plant in addition to decreased process treatment ability.
  • Many of the manufacturers of the pumps, motors, and other equipment found at TRWWTP are no longer making the replacement parts needed.
  • New wastewater specific equipment is often expensive and modernized in a way that no longer fits within the original design intent of the TRWWTP and must be re-engineered to fit the overall process of the plant.

Additionally, State regulations require an expansion of the TRWWTP. Under its current Colorado Discharge Permit (CDPS), the State requires that a domestic wastewater treatment plant initiate engineering and financial planning for expansion whenever the throughput reaches 80% of its treatment capacity. Construction is required to commence when throughput reaches 95% of the treatment capacity. Staff at the TRWWTP are measuring and reporting BOD concentrations in the inflow to the plant that trigger both engineering and construction requirement.

What is the Telluride Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (TRWWTP)?

The Telluride Wastewater Treatment Plant (TRWWTP) is a publicly owned water treatment facility that receives and treats wastewater from residences, businesses, and commercial enterprises such as hotels, restaurants, breweries, distilleries and car washes. Wastewater treatment uses a series of processes to remove pollutants and impurities from sewage to clean it before discharging to the San Miguel River.

Who does the Wastewater Treatment Plant serve?

The TRWWTP treats wastewater produced by Telluride, Mountain Village, Aldasoro Subdivision, Lawson Hill Subdivision, Hillside Subdivision, The Falls Subdivision, Eider Creek Condominiums, and Brown Homestead Condominiums in unincorporated San Miguel County through a sewage collection system.

Mountain Village participates jointly with the Town to provide financial support for operations and maintenance (O&M) of the facility. The TRWWTP also receives and treats septage dumping from Porta Pottys, Recreational Vehicles (RVs), industrial cleaning waste, and septic tanks from the greater Telluride region as a public service.

What’s “wrong” with the current WWTP?

The TRWWTP was originally built in 1987, with subsequent phases added in 1994 and 2002. A typical wastewater plant can have a life expectancy of 40-50 years with proper maintenance, however the treatment equipment typically only lasts 15 to 20 years.

  • The current challenges faced at the TRWWTP are aging infrastructure and failing equipment as expected at the current age of the wastewater plant.
  • High altitude and harsh weather can even lead to decreased life span and more specialized equipment.
  • The building itself is dealing with roof leaks that damages costly lab equipment and computers, outdated electrical wiring that frequently blows fuses and trips breakers, boiler leaks that forced staff to turn off heating inside the plant during winter, rodent infestations and droppings that cause health concerns, and a failing HVAC system that does not provide proper air ventilation.
  • These issues and concerns lead to increased safety concerns for staff and their health while working at the wastewater plant in addition to decreased process treatment ability.
  • Many of the manufacturers of the pumps, motors, and other equipment found at TRWWTP are no longer making the replacement parts needed.
  • New wastewater specific equipment is often expensive and modernized in a way that no longer fits within the original design intent of the TRWWTP and must be re-engineered to fit the overall process of the plant.

Additionally, State regulations require an expansion of the TRWWTP. Under its current Colorado Discharge Permit (CDPS), the State requires that a domestic wastewater treatment plant initiate engineering and financial planning for expansion whenever the throughput reaches 80% of its treatment capacity. Construction is required to commence when throughput reaches 95% of the treatment capacity. Staff at the TRWWTP are measuring and reporting BOD concentrations in the inflow to the plant that trigger both engineering and construction requirement.

Page published: 21 Jun 2023, 03:30 PM