Shelburne Falls Wastewater Treatment Facility
A .25 mgd Grade IV facility
The facility is an extended aeration activated sludge process
using reed bed technology
We are located on Gardner Falls Road in the village of Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts on the Deerfield River.
We serve parts of the towns of Shelburne (on the east side of the river)and Buckland (on the west side).
Contact information:
Dan Fleuriel, Chief Operator
SFWWTF
17 State Street
Shelburne Falls, MA 01370
sfwwtf@crocker.com
Facility History and Current Operations
The facility was built in 1974. It used floating surface aerators in the aeration tanks and digester. Sludge was dewatered using sand drying beds.
Modifications since the facility's construction:
- Construction of a greenhouse enclosure on the sand drying beds
- Installation of baffles and additional flights in rectangular clarifiers
- Conversion of the digester from a floating surface aerator to coarse bubble diffused air
- Installation of reed bed constructed wetlands for residuals reducution and holding
- Upgrading of the Cl2gas feed system to 150 lb. tank-mounted gas chlorinators
- Replacement of the comminutor with a twin-shaft shredder
- Conversion of the aeration tanks from floating surface aerators to fine bubble membrane diffusers
- Replacement of the digester roof for better heat retention
The greenhouse and a belt filter press were used until the Buckland town landfill closed. These are now available as backup.
Today's processes
- Preliminary Treatment
- Sewage shredder with bar screen backup
- Aerated grit removal chambers
- Secondary Treatment
Fine bubble diffused aeration tanks: Two tanks fitted with membrane diffusers Combined volume of 316,000 gallons- Final settling tanks
- Disinfection
- Chlorination
- Solids Handling
- Sludge digestion with coarse bubble diffused aeration
- Final Treatment and Storage
- Reed Beds
- Reed bed #1, Full view, during harvest, 5,500 square feet
- Reed bed #1, Close-up, Reeds coming up, through the "cake"
- Sludge with worms in it
