Penn State’s Board of Trustees on Friday approved final plans and $65.2 million in funding to upgrade its wastewater treatment plant located off of University Drive.
The board also approved plans for the $14.5 million relocation of the Applied Research Lab steam plant from its current location in Patton Township to Benner Township.
Penn State’s wastewater treatment plant has been in operation since 1913 and, though it continues to function properly, most of its components date back to the 1950s and 1960s and are reaching the end of their useful life. The new project will address capacity, aging infrastructure and reclaimed water quality.
An average of 1.6 million gallons of water per day are treated at the plant and the upgrades will allow a capacity of 3 million gallons, with a microfiltration process that will improve effluent quality and produce what the Department of Environmental Protection terms Class A reclaimed water. That can then be used for irrigation, cooling tower make-up and toilet flushing, reducing groundwater withdrawals by 300,000 to 500,000 gallons per day.
The university has long employed a ‘living filter,’ a unique, sustainable process that ends with spray irrigation at Penn State agricultural fields about 2.5 miles from the core campus. The irrigated water naturally filters through plants, soil and rocks before recharging the regional water table. The process has resulted in no direct discharge from the wastewater treatment plant to a surface stream since 1983.
A pre-treatment facility with protective screening and odor control also is included in the project. Improvements would be made for on-site safety for workers and visitors, and to expand educational and research opportunities. Other upgrades include the effluent pump station and improved flow rate.
The treatment facility will remain operational during construction, which will occur within the existing footprint.
Flow comes almost entirely from University Park, with some from the College Heights area as well. Otherwise, all borough flow has been diverted to the University Area Joint Authority treatment plant since the 2006 Centre Region Act 537 plan update.
Centre Region Council of Governments municipalities last year approved updates to the state-mandated Centre Region Act 537 Sewage Facilities Plan for the project.
ARL Steam Plant
The ARL steam plant will move from Patton Township to the ARL Energy Science and Power Systems Test Facility in Benner Township, in support of major new research programs there.
‘The project provides the opportunity to consolidate engineers, technicians, test resources, infrastructure and data acquisition with capacity for future growth and capabilities,’ according to a university news release.
A new, 21,000-square-foot industrial building will be constructed at the Benner Township site, which is a secured location.
Hoffman Leakey Architects of Boalsburg designed final plans and previously conducted a feasibility study for the relocation
