Overview
Timmons Group assisted Southampton County Department of Public Utilities with the rehabilitation of the 0.60 MGD aerated lagoon at Boykins WWTP. In general, the plant had not been operating per its original design performance intent. Timmons Group provided aid to the Utility Department to first troubleshoot the initial operational challenges, and then work with them to identify the larger infrastructure issues, which included insufficient mixing, deterioration of aging equipment, large accumulations of sludge within the basins, and challenges with the facility’s influent quality.
Timmons Group worked with the Utility Department to recommend and specify improvements to the existing facility which includes the replacement of the aeration and mixing systems, installation of variable frequency drives for enhanced process operational control, evacuation of the stagnant sludge volume, repair of the clarifier equipment, and replacement of the lagoon liner. A part of the long term solution also included addressing of the variable influent quality, which was believed to contribute to some of the operational issues.
Last, Timmons Group functioned alongside the County to further train their plant operational staff in the running of this upgraded facility. Once installation of new equipment was complete, Timmons Group worked as an extension of the County’s staff, working 12 hour shifts to assist with the removal of solids to both reduce the cost to the client as well as ensure all equipment was properly working. Specific project highlights include: hands-on staff training, updating the plant’s O&M manuals, meeting with VDEQ to help mitigate on-going issues which lead to this plant upgrade, construction oversight, and plant start-up at the completion of all improvements.
