Crews work against the clock to complete important milestone at the WRRF
After months of planning, the new disinfection basin at the Water Resource Recovery Facility (WRRF) is online.
“This is a milestone in the multiyear project,” Karl Keel, interim Public Works Director at the City of Mankato, stated. “We needed to hook up the pipe that feeds treated wastewater into the new disinfection basin. That pipe is 3 feet in diameter and located 20 feet underground.”
The WRRF needs to remain functioning during all construction phases which presents unique challenges to engineers, contractors and staff. In this case, the treated wastewater that continues to flow had to be diverted to holding tanks while the new pipeline was attached.
“The holding tanks have only so much capacity. We had about 18 hours to get the new disinfection basin pipe connected before the holding tanks would begin overflowing,” Keel added.
All the preparation and contingency planning paid off and the entire process went as scheduled and as planned. The new pipe was brought online around 2:00 p.m. Soon after, the new disinfection basin began filling.
The $93 million project is about one-third done. It is expected to be completed by mid-2027. The WRRF serves 65,000 people in the region, including residents in Mankato, North Mankato, Eagle Lake, Madison Lake, Lake Washington Sanitation Sewer District, South Bend Township, and Skyline.
