A flood mitigation project that will provide a significant level of security to the City of Bismarck’s Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) is nearing completion. This benchmark coincides with the potential redirection of treated wastewater beginning today through an alternate discharge point into the Missouri River.
Construction on this multi-year project has focused on the pipe that connects the WWTP to the Missouri River. This phase of the project reroutes water from the primary discharge point into a drainage system that flows beneath Tavis Road and eventually into the river. This project is designed to isolate the discharge pipe from the Missouri River which prevents water from backing up into the plant during flooding events – or more recently, ice jams.
“In all likelihood, we may never need to use this system, but when you are talking about the flood events of 2009 and 2011, if we had seen the crests that were predicted, we would have been in trouble without this system,” said Public Works Utility Operations Director Michael Mart. “But when we do need to use it, it is going to protect the plant from flooding and will save millions of dollars of potential flood damage to the plant.”
Four signs have been installed along Tavis Road where the treated water enters the drainage system. The public is recommended not to swim in, drink water from, or recreate in the area while the treated water is being discharged. Mart emphasized, “The water is still the same water that would otherwise be discharged into the Missouri River from the WWTP and complies with state and federal regulations.”
“We’ve contacted the State authorities about the project, as well as nearby homeowners to inform them of the temporary treated water release,” said Mart. “While there isn’t a large concern, at the end of the day, it is still treated effluent. We want everyone to know what it is they are dealing with and give them the information to make the best choices for themselves.”
During the process in which treated water is sent to the drainage system, a gate structure will be under construction. This construction is expected to take up to 10 days to complete.
For more information about the WWTP and Public Works Utility Operations please visit the Public Works Utility Operations Page.