News...

July 27, 2006 - The Ocean County Utilities Authority has been selected to receive a Peak Performance Award for each of its three facilities. The Peak Performance Awards program presented by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) recognizes public wastewater treatment facilities for their outstanding record of compliance with their NPDES permits in the 2005 calendar year.  NACWA was proud to recognize over 300 Peak Performance Award facilities during the Association’s 35^th Anniversary Annual Meeting held May 1-2, 2006 in Washington, D.C. 
     The Ocean County Utilities Authority facilities each received Gold Peak Performance Awards which honor treatment works that have achieved 100 percent compliance with their NPDES permit for an entire calendar year.  The awards were presented by the Authority’s Chairman, John Parker, to representatives of each facility at the Authority’s Regular Meeting on July 27, 2006.
     The OCUA’s three treatment facilities have an outstanding record of permit compliance. The Southern Water Pollution Control facility, located in the Cedar Run section of Stafford Township, has achieved 100 percent compliance for 16 of the past 17 years. The Central Water Pollution Control Facility in the Bayville section of Berkeley Township has been in total compliance for 15 consecutive years; and the Northern Water Pollution Control Facility in Brick Township has achieved 100 percent compliance in 13 of the past 14 years. Each of the Authority’s facilities are prior recipients of NACWA’s Platinum Peak Performance Award which honors facilities that have achieved 100 percent permit compliance for five consecutive years.
     “The Ocean County Utilities Authority is an outstanding example of the environmental efforts of our member agencies.   NACWA is honored to showcase the achievements of the OCUA and our nation’s public wastewater utilities through the Peak Performance Awards Program.” Ken Kirk, NACWA’s Executive Director.

June 20, 2006 - The OCUA is pleased to welcome our newest commissioner, Carmen F. Amato Jr. Mr. Amato will serve as an alternate commissioner for a term starting June of 2006 and lasting until January of 2008.  We wish the best for Mr. Amato and are excited to receive him as an addition to our esteemed board of commissioners. The picture featured depicts the swearing in of Carmen F. Amato Jr. (left) along with his fiancé (right) by Counsel Richard H. Woods (center).
 

May 10, 2006 - OCUA’s vehicle fleet gets greener with the addition of two Ford Escape Hybrid SUVs. The Authority has taken delivery of two Hybrid SUVs which were procured as part of the 2006 vehicle replacement contract. One of these new vehicles has been assigned to the Southern Division Director. The other hybrid will be used by multiple drivers from OCUA’s laboratory and make daily runs between all treatment plants to transport samples and also distribute internal OCUA mail. The intent is to evaluate the performance and economics of these two vehicles under different applications and then make a decision regarding their effectiveness.
     A hybrid vehicle is powered by two sources of energy, a gasoline engine and an electric motor. The electric motor is energized by a 300-volt nickel-metal-hydride battery that is located under the floor of the rear cargo area. The electric motor is a 65-kw model that works in conjunction with Ford’s efficient 2.3-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine. This combination can provide 35 to 40 miles per gallon fuel economy in the city driving cycle.
     A hybrid vehicle reduces our dependency on fossil fuel and reduces greenhouse gas emissions which contribute to global warming and air pollution. This particular hybrid, the Ford Escape, also uses regenerative braking. In a conventional vehicle the energy required to stop the vehicle is lost as heat through the braking system. In this hybrid, the energy used in braking acts as a generator being stored in the battery for later use.
     OCUA laboratory technicians who travel the roads of Ocean County 365 days a year will also have the benefit of an all wheel drive vehicle when road conditions are less than perfect. OCUA vehicle mechanics will be tracking gasoline mileage and maintenance costs to verify the efficiency of these new vehicles. Every reduction in fossil fuel consumption and reduction in air pollution helps the national economy and the environment.

May 4, 2006 - The Northern Water Pollution Control Facility of the Ocean County Utilities Authority (OCUA) has received a Regional Award for O&M Excellence in the Large - Secondary Treatment Plant Category from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). The presentation was made during the President’s Award Luncheon held as part of the NJ Water Environment Federation (NJWEA) Spring Conference at the Tropicana Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City. Accepting the award on behalf of the Authority were Chairman John C. Parker and Kenneth Stegemann, Director of the Northern Division.
     USEPA Region 2 regulates the environmental protection of the waterways which receive the treated effluent from facilities in the metropolitan area, and is very careful in assessing which, if any, facilities are worthy of consideration for this award. For many decades OCUA personnel have been consistently operating the conveyance and treatment facilities with exceptional results. OCUA’s staff has been consistently treating sewage to higher levels than required by their NJPDES Discharge Permits, and in so doing have made great contributions to improving the water quality of the Atlantic Ocean. Protecting the environment is a way of life at the OCUA, and the best measure of success is in the results achieved.
     The NWPCF staff has been recognized for both the effective treatment of sewage, as well as extremely efficient operations. One example of this efficiency includes the utilization of the digester gas as a fuel for the cogeneration system which has resulted in a nearly 40% reduction in the energy costs to operate the facility. All of this contributes to reducing the overall costs for treatment, and the resulting service charges to OCUA’s customer municipalities.

April 28, 2006 - The Ocean County Utilities Authority has issued a Notice to Proceed to Stone Hill Contracting Co., Inc. for the construction of improvements at the Authority's Southern Water Pollution Control Facility (SWPCF).  This improvements contract is estimated at approximately $26.6 million and is the largest single construction contract ever awarded by the Authority. 
     The South Plant was originally constructed in 1976 and has reliably treated the wastewater collected from municipalities in Southern Ocean County.  In 2000, the Authority, in conjunction with the consulting firm of Metcalf & Eddy, Inc, began a review of the SWPCF's primary and secondary treatment systems, effluent pumping systems, sludge handling operations, emergency power generation, site drainage and containment systems, and HVAC and electrical systems to ensure that the SWPCF will continue to reliably treat wastewater for the next 20 years or more.  This construction project is the culmination of five years of design work that progressed from feasibility studies to design proposals and finally to design documents.  Because of the magnitude of this project, the Authority had a value engineering study performed to review the feasibility and address cost-effectiveness of the numerous proposed design improvements and identify alternatives to what was proposed.
     The construction project includes:

       ·        The replacement of three (3) 84-inch diameter Archimedes screws, pump system, and the 480 volt
             motor control center equipment as well

·        Renovation of the laboratory facilities including HVAC upgrades, and installation of test equipment and laboratory furnishings.

·        Construction of new emergency generation facility including construction of a new building, installation of three (3) 1500 kW generators, synchronizing gear, electric switchgear, and controls.

·        Extensive concrete restoration work throughout the plant including influent channels, aerated grit chambers, aeration basins, as well as rehabilitation of structural steel and gratings.

·        Replacement of aeration blowers including installation of a fine bubble diffuser system, energy efficient variable frequency drives (VFD) for blower speed control, and control system upgrades.

·        Improvements to Sludge Handling Facility including installing new heat exchangers and energy efficient flares to provide improved efficiency of digester gas usage.

·        Improvements to effluent pump station including re-piping of effluent pipe to facilitate gravity feed and installing an energy efficient VFD to pump effluent when the flows are too high for gravity feed. 

     Construction is expected to take three years.  This project is being financed through low interest loans available through the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Environmental Infrastructure Trust Program. 

April 27, 2006 - The Ocean County Utilities Authority has awarded a contract to Lighton Industries, Inc. of Lakewood, New Jersey for the construction of a 200 kW direct current (dc) photovoltaic system on the rooftops of the CWPCF Operations, Engineering and Construction, Technical Services, and Central Services Buildings in Bayville, New Jersey.  The roof-mounted solar panels will convert solar energy into dc electric power.  The dc power is then converted to alternate current (ac) power which will be fed directly into the Authority's electric system.  Additionally, solar power system monitoring equipment will be installed that will connect to the Authority's process control computer system to monitor the performance of the solar system as well as calculate the electric savings.  The total cost for this project will be approximately $1.5 million and is expected to be fully operational by February 2007.  The Authority expects to receive construction grant funds in excess of $700,000 made available through the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) Clean Energy Program.  The balance of the project will be financed through low interest loans available from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Environmental Infrastructure Trust Program funds. The anticipated annual electric savings from this project should pay for the entire project in less than ten years.  The Authority is using this installation as a pilot program to determine the feasibility of installing similar systems at their other plants as well as expanding the solar system projects here at the CWPCF. Additionally, the Authority will get Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs) for the energy generated for this project.  The Authority will be able to offset the cost of this project through the sale of the SRECs which are typically on the order of $200 per kW of energy generated.

March 15, 2006 - The OCUA has received the NJ Association of Environmental Authorities (AEA) Wave Award for their leadership role in promoting the beneficial reuse of biosolids. This award is a culmination of two decades of concerted efforts to develop a comprehensive reuse program. This effort involved the selection of a drying technology, the design, construction and operation of the system and the development of marketing program to allow the Authority to compete in the fertilizer industry. The award was presented during the annual Award Luncheon held in conjunction with the AEA’s Spring Conference at the Trump Marina in Atlantic City. The award was accepted by Chairman John C. Parker and Commissioner DiAnne Gove.
     With over 50 million gallons a day of sewage flowing into three regional treatment plants resulting in over 30 dry tons of sludge to process for the entire County of Ocean and several Monmouth County municipalities, the OCUA formed a study team in the mid- 80s to guide and shape the future method for “sludge management” in Ocean County. The Study Team recommended that OCUA move ahead with a Reuse Program, and the Commissioners accepted the recommendation to design and build a facility that would produce a marketable fertilizer product.
After several attempts with a “failed technology”, the OCUA tailored the design specifications for the replacement system around a direct-drying system. A contract for the installation of this system was eventually awarded Andritz-Ruthner. Also included in this contract was the option to enter into a contract for the operation of the new facility. The OCUA exercised this option and Andritz-Ruthner is currently in their second five-year operations contract with the Authority.
     Knowing very little about the fertilizer industry, OCUA sought out and negotiated a three-year contract with Whellabrator/BioGrow (presently known as Synagro) to distribute 85% of OCUA’s product, while the Authority took on the challenge to market the remaining 15% of the product and build up the local markets.
Although there was some success the first year, OCUA did experience an initial loss of $35,000. OCUA decided to not only educate the staff about the organic and biosolid fertilizer called OCEANGRO, but to educate the general public. OCUA staff exhibited at and spoke at trade shows. The ability to demonstrate how biosolids could be substituted for topsoil in the construction of fairways on a new golf course lead to 15 new course construction jobs and numerous athletic fields and golf driving ranges. OCUA is also working with other wastewater agencies requiring assistance in this field. Additionally, OCUA has successfully attracted fertilizer bagger/blenders in the New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut areas.
    Over the last two years, OCUA has worked with the County of Ocean to conduct a trial to add OCEANGRO to the County’s leaf compost operation with the goal of attempting to speed up the process, to gain additional capacity in the composting yard while also creating and improved product. Ocean County can now process twice the volume of leaf compost as before and they are now developing a market to sell the enhanced material.
     At OCUA, OCEANGRO is not a project or program, “It’s a Way of Life.” The positive attitude and pride show in many forms. On any given day at OCUA, you could meet one of its employees wearing a shirt with the “OCEANGRO” logo which he or she proudly displays. It could be a staff member reaching out to help another agency which is implementing a similar project or getting involved with another demonstration project utilizing OCEANGRO. Other activities have and still include working with NJDEP and other governmental agencies to assess how some future regulations could be crafted. After having a “failed technology” ten years ago, today OCUA can be proud of having one of the premier biosolids reuse programs in New Jersey and in the United States.