Dealing with wastewater sludge can be pretty messy. But soon that mess will be lessened as  the city plans to purchase a wastewater centrifuge.

Wastewater sludge is currently dried in vacuum drying beds that have reached the end of their life expectancy. The city explored several other options and a sludge centrifuge proved to be the best solution.

Once the sludge has gone through the centrifuge, the final product is 20 percent solids. The old drying beds, meanwhile, had only eight percent solids.

This will allow the city to transport sewage sludge in one third the trips as previously required and with less chance of spillage. The sludge is used to cover farmer’s fields as fertilizer at no cost.