Posted on: Thursday, February 13, 2003

Sewage treatment costs to be studied

By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer

As a federal waiver that allows O'ahu's largest sewage plant to discharge partially treated wastewater nears expiration, officials will study the cost of upgrading the treatment method.

Building such facilities at the Sand Island plant could cost as much as $500 million. The study will determine how that would affect the city's budget, debt capacity, bond rating and the sewer bills of customers.

The city does not intend to upgrade the plant from "advanced primary" to "secondary" treatment, but needs to know what the economic impact of such a change would be, city Environmental Services director Tim Steinberger said.

The average customer's monthly sewer bill is now $33, he said.

Steinberger said the economic study will give the city solid financial information to present if the EPA imposes additional requirements on the plant to qualify for the new treatment waiver.

The federal Clean Water Act requires most sewage plants to perform secondary treatment, which removes more sludge from wastewater before it is dumped in the ocean.

But Sand Island operates under a special waiver from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The waiver expires in November. The city must apply for a new waiver by early May.

A major part of a $300 million upgrade under way at Sand Island, which helped the city qualify for the waiver, is far behind schedule.

The EPA has also cited the city for violations of the waiver's requirements. EPA officials are in Honolulu to inspect the plant and review the city's plans to correct the violations.

A $77 million sewage disinfection unit is 18 months behind schedule because of major design changes and construction difficulties. That could increase the cost by more than $8 million and cause more delays.

The UH Water Resources Research Center is to conduct the $3,800 study. Its outline concludes "any appreciable added cost for secondary treatment would be unjustified."