The wastewater treatment plant, with a 25,000 GPD capacity, uses two stages of MABR modules.

MABR Technology Implemented at Wastewater Treatment Plant in Bordeaux, St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands

Background

St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands is considered one of the most beautiful sites in the Caribbean. Being an island affects the natural water supply, and water shortages have an impact on irrigation for local farmers, domestic use, and tourism. The Bordeaux plant in St. Thomas is a localized municipal wastewater treatment plant, designed to serve a population of approximately 200 houses.

Challenges

The Bordeaux region of St. Thomas had a pressing need for a wastewater treatment plant that produced high-quality effluent. Its existing plant was old and didn't meet regulations or industry standards. The Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority (VIWMA) was looking for a solution that could treat current and future sewage flow and produce high-quality effluent that could be discharged into the environment in the Bordeaux area or be used as reclaim water for agriculture irrigation in the future.

The project requirements included:

• Minimal energy consumption
• Competitive capital cost
• A capacity of 25,000 GPD
• High treated effluent quality
• Modular design to allow for future expansion
• A tight deadline of design, delivery, and execution within seven months

Solutions

Fluence, together with its partner SD&C Inc., built the MABR-based wastewater treatment plant from the ground up, utilizing whatever existing pieces of equipment could be salvaged from the old plant. MABR was chosen because of its:

• Extremely low energy consumption (up to 90% less than than conventional aeration technologies)
• Low operating costs
• High effluent quality
• Modular, scalable, and easily expandable design
• Quiet and odorless operation

The Fluence MABR-based wastewater treatment solution features:

• Fine screens and FOG separator as pretreatment
• Biological treatment using MABR modules arranged in two stages: 1st stage, six modules; 2nd stage, three modules
• Secondary clarifier
• Tertiary treatment based on media filter and a disinfection unit

The plant has been operating since December 2016, producing excellent effluent quality.

Contact Fluence to learn more about our MABR wastewater treatment solutions, or to discuss your next project with our experts.