Sustainability Watch: Gresham, Oregon Waste Water Treatment Plant

I have recently decided that it would be fun to incorporate as a part of the Saving Water, Saving Enery blog a monthly 'Sustainability Watch' of sorts, highlighting businesses, services, utilities etc. across the nation that go the extra mile to protect our environment by making energy and water conservation a top priority. As water and waste water treatment account for approximately 4% of national energy consumption, what better way could there be to kick off the SWSE Sustainability Watch, we will take a look into the awesome things happening at the Gresham, Oregon Waste Water Treatment Plant.

Gresham, Oregon's Waste Water Treatment Plant - with a treatment capacity of 20 million gallons per day - currently generates approximately 60% of the electricity needed to operate, on site and has plans to become completely energy independent by year 2015.

Among the array of energy awesome things happening at the treatment plant, is a 395 kwh producing cogeneration engine (much like one in operation at Oregon's Columbia River Treatment Plant that Bevan and I toured last year) which converts the naturally produced methane gas from the waste solids into more than 50% of the plant's electricity needs. According to the City of Gresham, this methane to electricity cogeneration system has helped the city cut annual electricity costs by approximately $260,000.

Additionally hacking away at grid power usage by the Gresham Treatment Plant is the largest ground-mount solar array in the Northwest United States that is located on site of the plant. The nearly 2000 solar panels at the plant produce approximatly 419 kilowatts of electricity, which according to Water and Wastes Digest, supply approximately 7% of the plant's annual electricity needs.

Between 2006 and 2010, the Gresham Treatment Plant reduced general grid electricity consumption from just over 3 million kWh/annually to just over 1 million, and added approximately 1 million kWh/year of wind power to the mix, according to a graph reported by Water World. But the facility doesn't plan on relying on even Wind powered grid electricity let alone general grid power for long.

Plans to install a new fats, oils and grease collector that will drastically increase the production of methane at the plant, as well as plans to install a second methane to electricity cogenerator are expected to push the plant's electricity production capacity into being completely independent. Water and Wastes Digest [report](http://www.wwdmag.com/The-Power-Lies-Within-article12770 that the plant expects not only to produce enough electricity to operate entirely independent from grid electricity, but enough to add additional electricity to the grid for other local uses.

Here is a list of the various honors and awards the Gresham Waste Water Treatment Plant has received over the last few years as [reported](http://www.wwdmag.com/The-Power-Lies-Within-article12770 by WWD:

• 2009 Platinum Peak Performance Award from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (for achieving total compliance with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit requirements for five consecutive years);
• 2008 Public-Private Partnership Award from the National Council of Public-Private Partnerships;
• 2006 Award of Excellence from the League of Oregon Cities; and
• 2006 Julian Award for Sustainability from the American Public Works Assn. Oregon chapter.

Congratulations Gresham Waste Water Treatment Plant for a water and energy job well done! As a neighboring Portland resident, I look forward to witnessing you successfully achieve your 100% electricity independence in the near future.

Stay tuned to see what business, service, utility, etc. will be highlighted in next months SWSE Sustainability Watch!