Tennessee thermal dryer facility delayed

The Clarksville, Tennessee, Gas & Water Department has announced its thermal dryer project has been pushed back until September because of several delays, Clarksville Now reports.

The city has built a facility to treat and stabilize biosolids generated in the treatment of sewage at the Clarksville Wastewater Treatment Plant. The 9,600-square-foot building will house the thermal drum dryer and associated natural gas-fired furnace. The development will also house a complex, multistory array of support equipment and associated piping and ductwork.

Clarksville Gas & Water received a $15 million grant for the thermal dryer. Grant delays, weather delays and delays on specialized equipment shipping from different parts of the world has pushed implementation to September.

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Unstabilized sewage biosolids are currently taken to the Bi-County Landfill for disposal. The thermal dryer process will produce a stabilized, pelletized biosolid that may be suitable for reuse. Because the water content of the biogrades will significantly decrease, improving ease of handling, and there will be a reduction of volume and mass, which reduces landfill tipping fees, disposal at the landfill will continue to be an option.

“The thermal dryer project at our wastewater treatment plant is an innovative step within the progressive process of waste elimination that will significantly reduce the odor and volume of wastewater byproduct currently delivered to our local landfill,” Mark Riggins, general manager of Clarksville Gas & Water, tells Clarksville Now.

Until the thermal dryer opens, Gas & Water will continue hauling the sludge to the Bi-County Solid Waste Landfill.