The City of Jal, N.M., recently signed a three-year service agreement for bioaugmentation services in the city’s wastewater treatment system.
The agreement employs EnBiorganic Technologies (EBT), which offers autonomous systems for wastewater treatment. Jal’s wastewater treatment system had been out of regulatory compliance for several years due to an influx of large numbers of oilfield workers, which overloaded a 50+ year-old system.
The city was faced with having to build a mechanical treatment plant that could cost as much as $20 million, taking years to design and build.
To try and help mitigate the existing problems, Jal elected to try a bioaugmentation service through a performance trial during late summer 2021. The unit was installed at the treatment plant’s lift station. The plant currently serves a population of approximately 3,000 with an average treatment of 0.2-.3 million gallons daily (MGD).
Shortly after installation, the facility’s odor and sludge problems began to disappear. In less than one month, the treatment facility’s effluent was well within permit levels and continued improving.
“These numbers are shocking,” said Matt White, City Manager of Jal. “BOD has dropped to 5.5 milligrams, TSS is down to 5.2, total nitrogen is at 10.9, and we are in compliance. We’re very pleased with what we’ve seen and it seems to be working very, very well.”
