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Wastewater Treatment Facility
City of Huron Plans for Future
by Expanding Wastewater Treatment Facility
Project Owner:
City of Huron, SD
Unique Project Challenges:
- A desire to simplify a complicated piping network that also needed to remain in operation during construction.
- PVC resin shortage due to a catastrophic Texas storm resulted in force majeure declaration on large diameter PVC pipe.
- Navigating Covid mandates/unknowns during design followed by Covid-related supply/demand issues during construction.
- Cold weather SBR startup due to construction delays.
- A manufacturing error of a critical SBR component required creative thinking by the project team, leading to an acceptable solution.
- Corrosive soils at the site presented unique challenges with operating temperatures of the air piping and traditional pipe coatings.
Key Features:
- Upgrades to existing pretreatment facility including mechanical screen, grit removal and conveyor replacement
- Replacement and relocation of aging 18" diameter forcemain
- New anaerobic lagoon lift station
- Simplified process operations
- New continuous flow sequencing batch reactor (SBR) treatment facility
- Standby generation
- SCADA system improvements
- Peak month capacity of 5.19 MGD
- Peak day capacity of 8.0 MGD
The City of Huron, South Dakota, a community of just over 14,000 people in Beadle County, is actively preparing for its future growth. The City's existing wastewater treatment facility, which dated back to the 1930's, was nearing the end of its useful life and was undersized for the City's future needs. In addition, increasing population, more stringent regulatory effluent requirements, and the City's desire to provide treatment capacity for future economic development opportunities, prompted the need for improvements to the City's wastewater treatment facility.
The City completed a Facility Plan in 2019 to analyze future wastewater flows and loadings, summarize existing major equipment replacement needs, and to evaluate wastewater treatment alternatives. As part of the Facility Plan, the City elected to move forward with a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) treatment process. With extensive recent SBR experience, DGR Engineering was selected to work alongside the City to evaluate the various SBR manufacturers based on site visits, manufacturer presentations, and past experiences. The City determined a flow-through style SBR system to be the preferred choice, based on the jointly-developed selection criteria and the ability to meet anticipated permit limits.
In addition to constructing a new four-cell SBR, the project consisted of rehabilitation to the existing preliminary treatment building (including replacement of the existing mechanical bar screen and vortex grit removal system), HVAC improvements, gate and plate replacement, and the addition of an anaerobic cell lift station. A full-plant supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system was incorporated in the project for remote monitoring.
The new facility, rated for 8.0 million gallons per day (peak day), nearly doubles the capacity of its predecessor. The expanded capacity will provide for for future population and industrial growth as well as economic development.
Construction began in 2021 and was substantially complete in 2023. The $12.8 million construction costs were financed through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF)
Project Approach
- Jointly worked with the client to evaluate various treatment alternatives to select an option that meet the client's treatment goals at an affordable cost.
- Evaluated several locations for the SBR location and the impact on future downstream processes for more stringent regulations.
- Analyzed existing infrastructure and process control to determine simplified alternatives.
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Control Systems & Automation
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Land Acquisition Services
DGR Engineering offers a “one-stop shop” for planning, designing, permitting, right-of-way and easement acquisition services, and construction administration needs.
Water Treatment Plant Improvement
The improvements delivered a cost‑effective, long‑term solution that enhanced reliability, met regulatory requirements, and advanced system capacity goals.
Northwest Iowa
The original Great Bend Water Treatment Plant was constructed in 1983 and the equipment had outperformed its useful life. Red Rock Rural Water System (Red Rock) faced a dilemma: rehab a nearly 40-year-old facility to extend its useful life, or start fresh by constructing a new facility. Red Rock worked with DGR Engineering to begin design of a new state-of-the-art water treatment plant that would provide continued growth opportunity for Red Rock’s next 40 years of operation.
Two new production wells were drilled and developed a total of 1,100 gpm of new capacity. Red Rock also wanted to incorporate operational improvements over the old treatment plant, including a dedicated office space with a fully functional master SCADA computer that can operate all components of the plant, as well as all other facilities in the water system. Pneumatically actuated valves on the filters are tied into the SCADA controls to automate the backwash process.
Two rapid infiltration basins were constructed to collect backwash water from the filters. The infiltration basins allow the backwash water to recycle back into the aquifer while filtered particles settle out on the surface of the basin.
The new Great Bend Water Treatment Plant went into full-time operation in May 2023. By the time the new facility went on-line, the original Great Bend treatment plant was functioning at only 60% of its designed capacity. Initially the new facility will operate at 1.2 million gallons per day (MGD) at a flow rate of 1,000 gpm.
The building is expandable to add future treatment equipment that can double the treatment capacity as water demands increase in the future. With three times more water available and enough annual water appropriation to operate at full capacity all year long, the new facility has become Red Rock’s primary water source.
Pump Station & Storage Reservoirs
Water Source Resiliency
For Southwest Minnesota
Lincoln-Pipestone Rural Water System
Project Owner:
Lincoln-Pipestone Rural Water System
Key Experience:
- Designed pump station for versatility with three initial discharge headers, one future discharge header, and two fill directions for the reservoirs
- Reconfigured distribution system including controls of existing facilities to accommodate replacement water source
Key Features:
- 21-mile, 14-inch diameter PVC pipeline
- Two 400,000-gallon glass-fused-to-steel ground storage reservoirs
- 1,620 gpm pump station
- New connection to serve the City of Edgerton
Lincoln-Pipestone Rural Water System (LPRW) serves approximately 4,500 customers, including 32 towns as bulk customers, in ten southwest Minnesota counties. Traditionally, LPRW treated water from their Holland water source using a reverse osmosis (RO) treatment process to remove nitrate in parallel with pressure filters for iron and manganese removal. When the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency notified LPRW that their RO discharge permit would be discontinued, LPRW needed to secure a replacement treatment process or replacement water source.
To fill this need, LPRW and DGR Engineering (DGR) undertook the Edgerton Pump Station, Reservoirs, and Pipeline project. The improvements allowed LPRW to replace the source capacity lost at the Holland water source with their water allocation from Lewis & Clark Regional Water System. LPRW is one of the founding members of Lewis & Clark, and LPRW’s ability to adapt to an alternative water source is a credit to the organization’s foresight and resiliency.
DGR tackled the unique challenge of fundamentally changing operations for the south half of LPRW’s system. LPRW’s original Edgerton Pump Station received water from the Holland WTP and pumped it east to serve customers and to fill the Chandler Elevated Tank. A new Edgerton Pump Station was designed to handle all of the same demands as the original Edgerton Pump Station and to pump water back toward the Holland WTP to serve territory previously upstream of the original Edgerton Pump Station.
Lewis & Clark has a metering facility for Rock County Rural Water District at the City of Magnolia, MN and agreed to sell water to LPRW from that facility. DGR designed 21 miles of 14-inch diameter PVC pipeline to deliver water from Lewis & Clark’s meter station to the new Edgerton Pump Station. The pipeline design includes provisions for a future booster station, which will be needed if LPRW purchases more water from Lewis & Clark in the future.
During preliminary planning, the City of Edgerton requested a bulk water service connection from LPRW. The pipeline was intentionally routed to pass near the city’s well building for a service connection to the city. A related project for a meter/pump station for the city service is currently under construction.
The pipeline delivers water to two 400,000-gallon, glass-fused-to-steel ground storage reservoirs at the Edgerton Pump Station site. The reservoirs provide flow equalization and improve pump station operability and reliability. Two reservoirs allow for redundancy in case one reservoir is out of service for maintenance or repairs.
The new Edgerton pump station consists of seven vertical multistage pumps which serve three separate discharge headers, and the station includes provisions for increasing the capacity in the future. Special consideration was given to the pipe and valve configuration so pumps can be used for multiple headers for redundancy. The station also is able to fill the reservoirs from the Holland WTP in case of source interruption from Lewis & Clark.
DGR worked closely with LPRW to incorporate preferences for station layout, pump size selection, and station capability options. DGR designed the control system and worked with multiple SCADA providers to coordinate control integration for the new facility and for communications with other water systems.
Total construction cost of the pump station, reservoirs, and pipeline project was $5.1 million, which was financed using a combination of USDA Rural Development loan and Minnesota Public Facilities Authority Point Source Implementation Grant (PSIG) funding. DGR worked with LPRW to secure funding and administer state prevailing wage requirements dictated by the PSIG funding. The new Edgerton Pump Station will allow LPRW to meet current and future water demands and provide their customers with reliable, high quality water.
Featured Projects
- All
- Aviation
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Control Systems & Automation
Our team of experts can cater custom SCADA solutions for any size project.
Land Acquisition Services
DGR Engineering offers a “one-stop shop” for planning, designing, permitting, right-of-way and easement acquisition services, and construction administration needs.
Water Treatment Plant Improvement
The improvements delivered a cost‑effective, long‑term solution that enhanced reliability, met regulatory requirements, and advanced system capacity goals.
Northwest Iowa
Wastewater Treatment Facility
Orange City Prepares for the Future
Addition of mechanical treatment facility meets capacity and compliance
Project Owner:
City of Orange City, IA
Key Features:
- New flow-through sequencing batch reactor (SBR) wastewater treatment facility
- Preliminary treatment includes spiral screening and grit removal
- UV disinfection
The City of Orange City, IA, population approximately 6,000, received an Administrative Consent Order from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources for effluent ammonia violations of their National Pollution Discharge Elimination (NPDES) permit in 2015. The City was required to make improvements to their wastewater treatment plant to bring them into compliance with effluent limits. In turn, the City evaluated treatment options to not only meet existing permit limits, but also to comply with anticipated future limits including provisions for the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy.
DGR Engineering (DGR) worked with the City to evaluate alternatives, which included constructing a sequencing batch reactor (SBR), mixed bed biofilm reactor (MBBR), retention and land application, activated sludge, or submerged attached growth reactor (SAGR).
The evaluation considered capital costs, long-term operation and maintenance costs, operational flexibility and expandability. After consideration and numerous site visits, the City ultimately determined a flow-through style SBR system to be the preferred choice based on the selection criteria and the ability to meet anticipated permit limits.
Preliminary treatment includes a spiral screen and vortex grit removal system. An ultraviolet (UV) disinfection system was also included to meet effluent disinfection requirements. A full-plant supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system was incorporated in the project for remote monitoring.
The existing facility consisted of a six cell aerated lagoon system which included an industrial pretreatment cell with surface aerators, three aerated cells with diffused air, along with two quiescent cells.
The new system will utilize two of the existing lagoon cells’ flow equalization and sludge storage prior to land application. During peak flow events, the facility can split flow to utilize the dedicated lagoon for equalization and then send back influent wastewater through the plant when flows subside.
The facility was designed to treat a total flow of 2.45 million gallons per day (MGD) to accommodate projected 20-year domestic and industrial growth.
The new facility was designed for an increased population of 6,500. The improvements made the facility easily expandable for future needs and was designed with impending nutrient limits in mind.
Due to the complexity of the new facility, the required operator certification increased from a Grade II to a Grade IV certification. DGR Engineering worked closely with the City and IDNR to determine a pathway for expedited training and certification of existing staff.
Total project cost was $9.9 Million. The City used local bonds for the project costs.
Featured Projects
- All
- Aviation
- Civil
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- Water & Wastewater
Control Systems & Automation
Our team of experts can cater custom SCADA solutions for any size project.
Land Acquisition Services
DGR Engineering offers a “one-stop shop” for planning, designing, permitting, right-of-way and easement acquisition services, and construction administration needs.
Water Treatment Plant Improvement
The improvements delivered a cost‑effective, long‑term solution that enhanced reliability, met regulatory requirements, and advanced system capacity goals.
Northwest Iowa
Wastewater Treatment Facility (SBR)
Wastewater facility design
Involves Planning for growth
and pending regulations
Growing Dell Rapids community builds
system that will foster future growth
Project Owner:
City of Dell Rapids, SD
Key Features:
- New Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) wastewater treatment facility
- Pretreatment includes spiral screen and grit removal
- Ultraviolet disinfection
The City of Dell Rapids, SD, population 3,705, was under a construction order as part of their new Surface Water Discharge Permit. Effluent ammonia levels over their permit limits had caused several violations and the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) required upgrades to their system to address these issues.
The City completed a study to evaluate several treatment processes which included Submerged Attached Growth Reactor (SAGR), conventional activated sludge, extended aeration, trickling filters, membrane bioreactor, moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) and Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR). The evaluation considered capital cost, long-term operation and maintenance, along with future discharge limits. With consultation from DGR Engineering (DGR), the City ultimately selected the SBR treatment process which enabled them to adapt easily to future permit limits. Cost, ease of operation and the ability to be easily expanded to meet future growth were factors in the decision.
The previous treatment process utilized an aeration lagoon, followed by a series of facultative lagoons. With a total project cost of $4.7 million, the new SBR system utilizes the existing aeration lagoon for equalization and another lagoon cell for sludge storage, which reduces the cost of the project for the City and provides more operational flexibility. The equalization basins also reduce the peak design requirements of the new treatment equipment because the peak flows can be diverted during a large rain event until the flows subside to or below the design capacity of the SBR system.
The SBR treatment process provided a cost-effective solution to meet future ammonia limits as well as being set up for anticipated total phosphorus and total nitrogen limits. The DENR was consulted during the design process to help establish anticipated future limits. Once these limits are implemented, the treatment cycle can be modified to meet total nitrogen limits, while a chemical feed system can also be added to meet future phosphorus limits.
DGR designed the system to be easily expandable if the City grows beyond the original design capacity. The new facility has a 750,000 gallon-per-day capacity and was constructed with a 20-year design life, using an estimated population of 5,900.
Featured Projects
- All
- Aviation
- Civil
- Electrical Power
- Survey
- Water & Wastewater
Control Systems & Automation
Our team of experts can cater custom SCADA solutions for any size project.
Land Acquisition Services
DGR Engineering offers a “one-stop shop” for planning, designing, permitting, right-of-way and easement acquisition services, and construction administration needs.
Water Treatment Plant Improvement
The improvements delivered a cost‑effective, long‑term solution that enhanced reliability, met regulatory requirements, and advanced system capacity goals.
Northwest Iowa