Water Treatment Plant

The Water Treatment Plant (WTP) is a couple miles north of Vermillion, SD and began operating in July 2012 using traditional lime softening treatment.  Phase 1 and Phase 2 were needed to begin operations with 36 million gallons a day (MGD) of treatment capacity.  Phase 3 is needed in order for the treatment plant to produce the members’ combined 44.19 MGD of firm capacity. Among other things, it includes two more solids contact basins and a second gravity thickener. Bid opening for Phase 3 is scheduled for March 21, 2024.  

WTP – Phase 1:

The contract was awarded to Foley Company of Kansas City, MO in July 2008 and substantial completion was reached in December 2010.  Final construction cost was $23.2 million.  This phase included a 4.5 million gallon underground reservoir, high service pump station and electrical switchgear building.  

WTP – Phase 2:

The contract was awarded to Foley Company of Kansas City, MO in May 2009 and substantial completion was reached in July 2012.  Final construction cost was $66.6 million.  This phase included the main treatment plant building (three levels with a combined 251,174 square feet), as well as three lime drying beds (10 acres each) and a decant pond.

french drain system:

The contract was awarded to Detlefsen Construction of Laurel, NE in September 2016 and substantial completion was reached in November 2016.  Final construction cost was $252,000.  Lime sludge is a by-product of the treatment process.  It is piped from the treatment plant to one of three lime drying beds.  Higher than expected ground water levels were saturating the drying beds and preventing the sludge from drying properly so it could be removed for agricultural applications.  To lower the ground water a French drain system was installed around three sides of the drying beds.  There was already a drainage ditch along one side of the beds.  The system is a buried “burrito” of fabric, rock and drain tile.  This contract was considered part of the authorized project so federal funds were used.  

High Service Pump Station Improvements:

A contract for $2,773,550 was awarded to PKG of Fargo, ND on December 21, 2021, for improvements to the high service pump station. The contract includes adding two 1,250 H.P. pumps and variable frequency drives, more A/C units in the electrical room and a third carbon dioxide skid. These improvements are needed in order to deliver the base system capacity of 44.19 million gallons a day, and are part of the phased approach of adding infrastructure as needed to meet demand. The contract includes $341,500 to also add A/C units to the main pump room to replace the louvres, which is the equivalent of trying to cool your house by opening the windows. These A/C units will be paid for by operations, whereas federal funding will be used for the rest of the contract. April 2023 is the substantial completion deadline.  

Lime Drying Beds:

A contract for $7,421,489 was awarded to Lidel Construction of Sioux Falls, SD on December 20, 2023, for the construction of three additional lime drying beds at the water treatment plant. L&C already has three existing drying beds. Of this total, the base bid of $6,089,740 is for the final two drying beds that are part of the 44.19 MGD base system. A $1,331,749 bid alternate incorporated a third drying bed that is part of the expansion to 60 MGD. Constructing the expansion drying bed as part of this contract instead of a separate contract later, resulted in a nearly half price savings. Non-federal funds will be used for the expansion drying bed. October 2024 is the substantial completion deadline.