As residents of Escambia County are well aware, the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority (ECUA) has embarked on an undertaking of historic proportions – relocating the 72-year-old Main Street Wastewater Treatment Plant to a new site 25 miles to the north. While this process has proven to be extremely challenging, our community has responded in grand fashion enabling us to successfully move forward through each phase of the relocation. As we begin preparations to enter into the site preparation and construction phases, ECUA would like to provide a brief recap of our journey so far and what can be expected in the future.

As part of a proposal to modernize ECUA’s facilities, the board, in 2003, initiated a feasibility study to determine the most cost-effective options for rebuilding or replacing the aging Main Street Wastewater Treatment Plant. This initial feasibility study revealed that replacing the plant with a modern facility, in a more central location, offered the best solution for the ECUA, its ratepayers and the citizens of Pensacola and Escambia County. Underscoring this finding, the damage that was caused to the plant when Hurricane Ivan struck in September of 2004 added significant wear and tear and, as a result, the issue of replacing the current plant moved front and center on the community’s agenda.

This prompted ECUA to have its engineering team, Baskerville-Donovan, Inc. and Hatch-Mott MacDonald, develop a facilities plan that would serve as the guiding document to take the new plant from “concept to concrete.” The facilities plan included the site selection and other components that detail the equipment to be used, recommended routes for transmission mains, reuse alternatives and a capital financing plan.  

	Facilities Plan Phase I	Executive Summary
	Facilities Plan Phase II	Executive Summary

The site selection phase began with the engineering team screening 23 potential sites based on a set of minimal pass/fail criteria. Of those, only 13 were viable based on the needs set forth by ECUA. These remaining sites were evaluated based on several key considerations that included:

• Amount of usable land above the Category 5 flood elevation.

• Proximity to neighborhoods and homes.

• Proximity to ECUA and private water well.

• Grade or slope.

• Potential for industrial and other reuse opportunities.

• Minimal impact on wetlands, historical and archeological sites.

Ultimately, the site selection process identified a 327-acre parcel off Chemstrand Road, owned by Solutia Inc., as best meeting the criteria set forth by ECUA. This proposed site offered many benefits over the current Main Street Wastewater Plant, for example:

• The site’s location is well-buffered from its nearest residential neighbors. Unlike neighbors of the Main Street Facility, they will not see, smell or hear the plant and its operation.  

• The site is inland and well above the Category Five flood elevation. The plant will not be subject to flooding and will be more resistant to the impacts of hurricanes.

• The site offers industrial reuse that is not economically available at the Main Street location.

 Further benefits of replacing the Main Street Facility include:

• Use of 21^st century technology that will lower operation and maintenance costs, while essentially eliminating odors.  

• Ending direct discharge of treated effluent into surface water.

• Accommodating job growth and economic development in the county.

• Eliminating a significant impediment to downtown improvement efforts.

Once the site, referred to as the Central Water Reclamation Facility (CWRF) had been chosen, it was time to begin designing the facility. The designing stage incorporated several steps needed to evaluate the future needs of the community. This design process included: Map of Proposed Transmission Line

• Projected flows had to be determined to identify the size and capacity requirements for the CWRF.

• Designing a Raw Wastewater Transmission System to redirect wastewater flows from the MSWWTP and three new regional lift stations, as well as other connected lift stations, to the CWRF.

• Identifying the best means of treatment for each phase of the water treatment process that met Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) standards for Advanced Wastewater Treatment (AWT) which would allow for industrial, as well as residential, reuse.

• Identifying support buildings to be constructed at the CWRF.

• Designing a Reclaimed Water Transmission System that will convey reclaimed water from the CWRF to the disposal sites.

• Determining the effluent disposal system to be implemented.

• Identifying potential industrial reuse partners.

The proposed schedule for design and construction of the CWRF and associated systems is predicated on the availability of funds, including $150 million, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). To ensure that the funds are used in an efficient and timely manner, ECUA has set a very aggressive timetable that we have been able to maintain thanks to the concerted efforts of many agencies and individuals within the community.

Additionally, FEMA, as required by federal law, conducted an environmental assessment to determine what effects, if any, the proposed relocation might have on the community and the environment. Their findings were made available for public comment which has resulted in no negative feedback or concerns and consequently, FEMA is in the final stage of issuing the expected Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

Clearing this hurdle will allow for FEMA’s obligated funds to be released for use, officially moving the process into the next phase: site clearing and construction. CWRF site clearing has been bid and other construction contracts will be bid in late spring. The administrative aspects of this phase (i.e. permitting, plans & specs, etc.) are being obtained which will allow for initial construction to begin in the summer of 2008. 

Additionally, we are very happy to announce that we have identified a partner for industrial reuse of the effluent discharge. The CWRF will provide 17 million gallons of effluent per day to be used by Gulf Power’s Crist Plant. The impact of this can not be overstated, economical or environmentally, for both facilities and the community as a whole. Recycling the effluent discharge via industrial reuse reduces the impact the facility’s processes will have on the environment while greatly enhancing the efficiency and reducing operational costs of both the Crist Plant and the CWRF. Further, as the community grows and waste intake increases, the CWRF will be able to provide more beneficial reuse water for uses within the community.

As we move towards this next, exciting phase in the redesigning of our community’s image, ECUA continues to strive to be a trusted partner to the Pensacola community and to provide information to keep you informed of our progress. We would like to thank all of the individuals, agencies and the community as a whole for their support and dedication towards our efforts and look forward to continued success as we realize our vision as your utilities authority.

For more information:  The public can learn more by calling 850-969-3391, by e-mailing questions to support@ecua.org, or by writing to the ECUA, c/o Main Street Replacement Project, 9255 Sturdevant Street, Pensacola, FL 32514.

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