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WEBSTER, NY — Why do the Village of Webster and the City of Webster each have their own wastewater treatment plants? Mike asked, “Why does Webster need two treatment plants?” We went to the plant on Phillips Road to find answers.
The Village of Webster’s plant on Route 250 processes about 2.5 million gallons of wastewater daily. The City of Webster’s plant on Phillips Road serves about 17,000 homes and processes about 5 million gallons daily.
“Both plants needed to be upgraded,” said Rick Kenealy, chief plant operator at the Phillips Road plant. “So there was talk of consolidating, a committee was set up, a lot of fact-finding was done, a lot of back and forth, people from both sides, village and city, and in the end the decision was that both plants were desired and perhaps even necessary for the area.”
One factor that sets Webster apart from other cities is the upcoming 8,000-square-foot Coca-Cola Fairlife dairy facility, currently under construction.
“They expect that once all the production lines are online, we will reach production of 2 million gallons per day,” Kenealy said.
Fairlife will eventually cover 30-40% of the Phillips Road plant’s wastewater. To accommodate this increase, the plant will undergo an $81.5 million expansion, including new electrical equipment, a new aeration and digester system, and a new drying station that will produce fertilizer from wastewater.
“We wanted to try a new way of doing business in the wastewater industry. We wanted to create a water reclamation facility and produce our own premium fertilizer and return it to the earth,” Kenealy said.
The plant received a $20 million grant from New York State for the project. Currently, the Phillips Road plant processes 5 million gallons per day. When the expansion project is completed, it will be able to process more than 7 million gallons per day, including the expected inflow from Fairlife.
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