The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WAITSBURG - While many cities scramble to keep up with ever-tightening Department of Ecology standards, Waitsburgers can rest easy knowing city offi- cials are proactively seeking out grant money to improve the efficiency of the city's wastewater treatment plant.

Waitsburg city admin- istrator Randy Hinchliffe presented the Community Development Block Grant application for discussion at the Waitsburg City Council meeting Jan.16. If awarded, the grant would allow the Waitsburg wastewater treat- ment plant press to be upgraded from a gravity-driven press to a belt style press.

The grant is federally funded and dispersed through the state, Hinchliffe said. There is about $10 mil- lion in the fund to cover proj- ects like the press upgrade in low-to-moderate income communities.

To prove Waitsburg was eligible for the grant, the city distributed an income inquiry survey, Hinchliffe said. The community-wide survey needed at least 38 percent of responses to come back from the community. The city received about 60 percent turnout on the mailed survey and of those responses, about 55 percent qualified as low to moderate income, qualifying Waits- burg for the grant.

The grant request of $200,000 would cover the entire cost of the project, Hinchliffe said. The city would not have to match the funds for the grant.

Hinchliffe said that the current press works, but it requires constant monitor- ing by treatment plant staff because it is influenced by flow changes. The belt press would allow the plant opera- tor to do other things around the plant. The new press would also allow the plant to use less of the polymer sprayed on the solid waste after the water is removed.

"(The plant operator) would be able to turn on (the press), start the polymer and walk away," he said.

The city is being proactive about the update, Hinchliffe said. Instead of waiting for the part to break or become outdated, the city is applying for the grant money now to keep costs down and avoid emergency spending.

"The system isn't falling apart," he said.

The 10-year-old plant is still in good shape, Hinchliffe said. But the city still owes about $860,000 on the wastewater treatment plant, so taking out another loan to update the press is not ideal.

To save money, the grant was written in-house so the only cost was city employ- ees' time and printing cost. And of course the two flat- rate boxes used to ship the heavy application.

"We're being very eco- nomical about (the application)," Hinchliffe said.

The paperwork was sent out on Jan. 28 and the award decision will be announced in May.