Wastewater on Pana council agenda

PANA — The Pana City Council heard a report from Benton and Associates on the city’s waste water treatment plant which indicates replacement is needed in order to comply with govern- ment regulations for treating the waste water. The report was presented Monday night during the council’s regular meeting.

The report indicates the plant has exceeded its useful life and is needing major repairs or replacement. The existing facilities are not able to process future sludge or meet future Phosphorus lim- its as established by the Illinois EPA or the federal EPA. Replacement, the report said, is difficult due to the age and operational load of the current equipment. It also states there is a hazardous environment for operators.

There were several options presented in the report, but the authors suggest the SBR (Sequencing Batch Reactor) option would be the most cost effective at $10.7 million.

According t the report, the new Phosphorus limit would be met by a combination of IEPA preferred biological and chemical removal for enhanced treatment and flexibility. The new facility and a new chemical feed system will ensure top level treatment with options for variable flow and raw water quality. The SBR system is a fully automated batch type system where one tank is always expecting influent waste- water. This allows for the operator to tweak settings to achieve different discharge values without additional tankage. Future Nitrogen limits can be met with only minor equipment additions and no additional tankage.

Two types of funding were described. One is through the state and the other is through the USDA Rural Development. Recommended is a 30-year loan through the state. About $3.2 million would come as a grant and the interest rate would be one percent. The recommenda- tion also comes with a sur- charge per customer of $10.50 per month to help finance the project.

No decision was made by council members and the matter will head to committee for further study.

In other business, mem- bers approved the fiscal year budget for 2022. They also approved a contract with the city’s service employees union. The contact calls for a 75¢ per hour wage increase each year over the three years of the agreement.

Benton and Associates were also approved to begin the design phase of a new 14- inch water line to supply the city’s water to Pine St. A revised Motor Fuel Tax resolution was passed. The measure re-allocates funds for various projects in the city.

Harley Hedderman and Konner Kloever were appointed to auxiliary firemen positions in the department.

Bids for two city lots, at 102 and 104 Orange St., were rejected. They will go out for bid again.

There was a 15 minute executive session to discuss land purchase. When the council returned to open ses- sion, no action was taken.

The meeting adjourned at 8:52p.m.