Ayres Associates recently completed work with the City of
Palatka on wastewater treatment plant improvements for
its reclaimed water tertiary treatment system, including
its chlorine contact chamber, disc filters, and reclaimed
water transfer pumps.
One of the reasons for the success
of the reclaimed water project
was Ayres’ timeliness in providing
the conceptual design and cost
estimation. In addition, through value
engineering of the different design
components and detailed inspection
oversight, Ayres was also able to react
quickly to contractors’ questions
and concerns and adjust the scope
accordingly, Boynton said.
“In the end, I think it was this open
and honest communication and
collaboration that Ayres developed
with the City and individual
contractors that made this project
successful and the City’s goal of zero
discharge realized,” he said. “Their
ability to adapt to changing field
conditions kept the project moving
without delays. We would work
cooperatively to ensure that permits
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were issued prior to and sometimes
concurrent with the construction
project commencing.”
Staying ahead of the curve
While reclaimed water systems are
gaining popularity now, Palatka was
an early leader when it instituted the
practice in 2005 and then expanded it
in 2007.
“We like to stay ahead of the game,”
McCann explained. “The City’s always
tried to be proactive. We don’t like to
sit around waiting for the world to fall
apart and then try to fix that. We like
to recognize problems in advance and
see what we can do to offset those
problems from occurring.”
Daryl Myers, an environmental
engineer at Ayres who’s played a
key role in developing the reuse
water system, isn’t aware of another
community in the area implementing
a reclaimed water use system like
Palatka’s.
“In a community of 10,000, I would
be hard-pressed to think of another
community in northeast Florida
that has a reclaimed system of this
magnitude,” Myers said. “It’s been
a very positive thing, and they have
a head start over a lot of other
communities that would probably like
to be doing this.”
Myers, who served as the engineer of
record on the reclaimed water system
plant expansion, was responsible for
designing a reclaimed water piping
system, determining reclaimed water
irrigation sites, and creating the
route across the City to reach those
sites. He designed a new reclaimed
water pumping station and nearly
33,000 feet of pipe across the City
to supply reclaimed water to several
irrigation sites, which include the
City cemeteries, Palatka High School,
St. Johns River State College, Ravine
Gardens State Park, and the St. Johns
River Water Management District
Headquarters Office.
Myers also helped coordinate
acceptance of the reclaimed water at
several of these sites and designed
improvements at the wastewater
treatment plant to facilitate the
treatment of effluent to reclaimed
water standards.
Truly creative problem
solving
Ayres, one of the City’s continuing
services providers, has also been
responsive to the special challenges
or problems that have occasionally
presented themselves, McCann
added.
The most recent issue involved a new
chlorine contact chamber the City
installed about two years ago. The
outfall from the chamber, a critical
component in properly disinfecting
the wastewater and transferring
reclaimed water to the golf course
holding pond, was modified due to
Above: The City of Palatka’s plant supplies reclaimed water to multiple venues,
including the municipal golf course, airport, cemeteries, and ball fields. A holding
pond is located at the City’s municipal golf course as a strategic location for
distribution to area reclaimed water users.
Reusing and
Preserving
According to the Florida
Department of Environmental
Protection, the state’s population
has increased by more than 20
percent over the past 10 years,
putting fresh water in higher
demand and leaving the state
vulnerable to water shortages.
In response, Florida’s five water
management districts have
designated “water resource
caution areas” and encourage
the use of reclaimed water
whenever possible.
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