By Ivan Raconteur
Staff Writer

Lester Prairie recently completed an $8.4 million wastewater treatment plant upgrade that will serve the city for 30 years and accommodate a population of 3,200 people, according to Operator Lee Ortloff of PeopleService, which contracts with the city to operate the plant.

Mayor Eric Angvall said the upgrades were needed to address future population growth and to meet new water quality mandates from the state.

“This is something the city should be proud of. People can feel good about the fact that the water we are discharging to the river is cleaner than what is out there. We are not adding to the problem, we are part of the solution,” Angvall commented.

Angvall praised City Clerk Marilyn Pawelk, who, on behalf of the city, applied for a phosphorus reduction grant. The city received a $403,588 grant to help pay for the project.

“There was some really nice teamwork on this project,” Angvall said.

As part of the improvements, the plant was upgraded from a “C” plant to an “A” plant, the most stringent classification for a wastewater treatment facility.

“The water we are discharging is 98.5 to 99.5 percent clean,” Ortloff said.

The discharge in question flows into the Crow River. This is one of the reasons the plant had to be upgraded. The Crow River has been classified as an impaired waterway, and the cities that discharge water into the river must meet stricter standards than in the past.

Phosphorus removal is one of the key issues, Ortloff said.

He explained that the old limit for phosphorus was 4 parts per million (ppm), and the new limit is 1 ppm.

The city is running well below that limit.

“The water comes into the plant at about 8.04 ppm, and goes out at about 0.12 ppm,” Ortloff said.

The city is currently treating about 100,000 gallons of wastewater per day, but the plant has a capacity to treat 364,000 gallons per day.

The plant is currently using biological, rather than chemical processing to treat the water.

By raising and managing bacteria to treat the water, it is possible to avoid the addition of chemicals.

The entire plant is automated and controlled by a central computer.

If necessary, Ortloff can even control the plant using a laptop computer from an off-site location.

Despite the expansion, the plant actually runs more efficiently and uses less electricity than the original plant, according to Ortloff.

The plant was designed to allow for future expansion, if needed.

Ortloff also said the plant has the capacity to remove things such as mercury, if required.