Repairs begin at Amarillo water treatment facility after nearly 1 million gallons of partially treated sewage spills in
Published: Wed, 09/27/23
Repairs begin at Amarillo water treatment facility after nearly 1 million gallons of partially treated sewage spills in 3 days
Hollywood Road Wastewater Treatment Plant in Amarillo
(Dalton Williams/KVII)
ABC 7 News
by Jamie Burch, ABC 7 News
AMARILLO, Texas (KVII) — The City of Amarillo began repairs Monday at the Hollywood Road Water Treatment Facility (HRWTF) after nearly 1 million gallons of partially treated sewage spilled in three days.
Crews started removing sludge sludge from the equalization basin, according to Assistant City Manager Floyd Hartman.
Hartman gave a presentation about the condition of the plant to city council on Sept. 12.
Just over a week later, the spills began:
- Sept. 20 - 275,000 gallons
- Sept. 21. - 525,955 gallons
- Sep. 22. - 141,000 gallons
The 2023-2024 COA budget includes $17 million for repair/improvement projects at HRWTF.
The city council is expected to approve the awarding of $116,920.62 to Rebuild It Sentry Equipment Company for some of the repairs.
“There are three primary reasons for the state of the Hollywood Road plant,” said Hartman. “A lack of maintenance that goes back decades, the age of the plant and the recent flooding event that caused significant damage to this facility.”
A portion of the HRWTF is located in a flood plain. According to the City, the facility was constructed before the flood plain was established.
During the Sept. 12 presentation, six critical projects for HRWTF were identified for council:
- Blowers
- Headwork
- Overall site electrical
- Influent pump station
- North secondary clarifiers
- Sludge
“There have been very few improvements through the years at this facility,” Hartman told the council on Sept. 12. “Even had the plant been in perfect condition, the recent flooding event would have caused significant damage.”
In July, several stabilization projects were identified for the HRWTF, including:
- The removal, treatment and disposal of contaminated material in the equalization basin, playa remediation, restoring damaged bar screens, restoring the grit removal process back to effective operation and repairing the electrical system in the Motor Control Center.
“The issues at the Hollywood Road plant did not occur overnight,” said Mayor Cole Stanley. “These are ongoing maintenance and repair issues that have existed for decades through numerous city council administrations. This council recognizes the need to respond and address these longstanding issues at this facility.”