Water Research Organization Honors LA Biosolids Management Program

The Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF), a nonprofit scientific research organization dedicated to wastewater and storm water issues, recently recognized the city of Los Angeles with its new Award for Excellence in Innovation for the Bureau of Sanitation's Terminal Island Renewable Energy (TIRE) project. TIRE has offered numerous environmental solutions and a successful diversified biosolids management program while potentially saving millions of dollars annually since the facility began operating in 2008.

This new WERF award recognizes organizations that have made improvements to wastewater and storm water collection, storage or treatment operations, facilities, and/or processes by applying WERF research. The Los Angeles Department of Public Works is one of two organizations to receive the award in its inaugural year.

The TIRE project is the nation's first full-scale demonstration project of a technology that converts biosolids into clean energy with deep-well placement and geothermal biodegradation.

“The Bureau of Sanitation is honored to have been selected by [WERF] for this award. The [TIRE] project improves air quality and reduces greenhouse gases by using wastewater treatment byproducts as a renewable resource in an innovative and environmentally safe manner,” said Enrique Zaldivar, director of the city’s Bureau of Sanitation.

The TIRE project reduces truck traffic and associated exhaust emissions, pollutants, odors and dust by 520,000 miles per year. There is a reduction in land application of biosolids in an exposed environment of 54,750 tons per year. There is also elimination from the atmosphere of 84 tons of NOX and 13 tons of carbon monoxide per year.

Source: Water Environment Research Foundation