BREWSTER, N.Y., June 28, 2004 – New York City has installed a Hydro-Clear® rapid sand filter from USFilter Zimpro Products, followed by a MEMCOR® Continuous Microfiltration (CMF) membrane system from USFilter Memcor Products at the Reed Farm Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP).  In addition to mitigating turbidity, solids, nutrient and pathogen contamination in the regional water supply, the combined system will also replace an existing intermittent sand filter.

The plant upgrade is part of a long-term, multi-million dollar watershed protection program that will safeguard New York City’s drinking water supply, in part, through upgrades to regional publicly- and privately-owned WWTPs.  Such plants must now comply with new design, construction and operation standards detailed in the recent Watershed Memorandum of Agreement between the watershed communities, city, state, EPA and environmentalists.  

The Reed Farm WWTP project is the first of several watershed program plant upgrades that will use USFilter’s Hydro-Clear filters and MEMCOR low pressure membrane technology.

The Hydro-Clear filter uses a shallow 10-inch bed of 0.45 mm sand to remove suspended solids from the upstream aeration/clarification process.  It also has a unique Chem-Clean® system to handle oil and grease present in municipal wastewater.  Ultimately, this maximizes membrane system performance by reducing membrane fouling and maximizing run time between backwashing and chemical cleaning.

The MEMCOR technology uses a proven built-in integrity test that positively validates the entire system to over 4-log removal of Giardia lamblia and Cryptosporidium.  These pathogens can cause severe illness or death if ingested by humans.  The MEMCOR technology also achieves phosphorus limits of 0.5 mg/L or less. 

“The USFilter equipment provides much more effective removal of pollutants,” says Mark Catalano, project manager of Milnes Engineering, Inc.  “It also provides greatly increased system reliability following the existing secondary plant, which remains in service.”

The Reed Farm WWTP is located in Putnam County, one-and-a-half hours north of New York City.  It is owned by the Reed Farm Homeowners Association, and operated by Allied Pollution Control of Brewster, N.Y. 

USFilter partnered with contractor C&F Fabricators & Erectors, Inc. of Colliersville, N.Y., and engineer Milnes Engineering, Inc. of Tunkhannock, Penn., on the project.

USFilter is represented in the local area by Riordan Materials Corp., Blue Bell, Penn.; and Envirolutions, Inc., Bridgewater, N.J.