ANTONITO – When the town of Antonito was told by Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) that the water in the lagoons they used to treat their wastewater was exceeding safe parameters in several areas, it became clear that the town needed to get a more modern, effective method of treatment.
There was just one major problem. Wastewater treatment plants are a very expensive investment with a price tag that runs in the millions. And while that may be somewhat feasible in larger cities, a $4 million to $5 million dollar price tag for a project in a town with about 800 residents is a significant (and daunting) chunk of change.
It is not an unfamiliar story. Inspectors, employed by large, governmental agencies officed in Denver hundreds of miles away, show up in small, rural towns where (doing their job) they discover a problem that prompts an edict being issued requiring a small town to take huge, expensive steps to rectify, despite lacking the resources to do so. But even in these situations that keep mayors and comptrollers up at night, success stories do happen.
One such story happened in Antonito where local officials connected with funding agencies and hired local companies able to provide the skills and services needed to get the job done. The result? Problem solved. CDPHE satisfied. Local businesses hired. And, most importantly, well-being assured for the citizens of Alamosa and the land where they live.
And it is precisely that kind of success story that prompted Armando Valdez, Biden appointee as state director for USDA Rural Development Center, to gather Antonito Mayor Mike Trujillo, Adam Robins (and crew) with Robins Construction, Amanda Atencio and Clay Burleson with Atencio Engineering and Tineel Baroz, USDA Community Programs Loan Specialist in USDA’s Alamosa Office, to tell Antonito’s tale.
According to Mayor Trujillo, Antonito has been investing in foundational infrastructure projects, including a clean drinking water project that was completed several years ago. The eight-year-long wastewater treatment plant project was another much needed step toward meeting the town’s needs.
As described by Amanda Atencio, civil engineer with Atencio Engineering, on September 3, 2013, CDPHE served the Town of Antonito a Notice of Violation regarding the town’s failure to comply with wastewater permit effluent limitations. Weekly and monthly average 5-day Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5) effluent parameters and Ammonia as Nitrogen (TAN) parameters were exceeded several times over the years.
Due to the non-compliance, CDPHE required the town to retain an engineer to evaluate various options for the town. In November of 2014, an engineering report recommended a specific type of mechanical treatment plant, due to the inability to guarantee effluent limits will be met in the future with the existing lagoons.
“The new system made the most sense in the long term,” says Atencio. “So, we looked at maintenance requirements, impact on user rates, projecting growth for the next twenty years. We also did a lot of due diligence in discussion with a lot of people from the town.”
By the time all required elements were factored in, the cost of the project was $3.5 million, which is where state and federal agencies stepped in to support the project. The Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) awarded $1 million for the project, the USDA awarded a grant for $1,833,000 plus a loan for the remaining $1,751,000 at the lowest rates and longest term available.
After hiring Robins Construction of Antonito to be the general contractor and Atencio Engineering to supervise the project, the project got the green light in September of 2020.
Several key existing problems were addressed as the project progressed. Along the sewer lines, there were “legs” where the original clay pipes had broken over time. Those clay pipes were replaced with PVC that would prevent leakage and seepage into the ground.
Also, a problem with pumps at the lift stations had become expensive, especially with the onset of the pandemic. As it turns out, “flushable” wipes may not be quite so flushable when it comes to wastewater treatment as, on numerous occasions, wipes got tangled up in the pumps, causing the pumps to shut down and, in some cases, break.
“People used a lot of wipes during the pandemic,” Atencio says. “Not just in Antonito, but everywhere.”
While it may have been possible to educate the entirety of people living and visiting in Antonito to not always believe what is written on the package, a better alternative was to install a “grinder”, which takes materials (like wipes) and grinds them down to the point that they can be collected and removed from the system without causing damage to the pumps.
In fairness to wipes enthusiasts, other items have ended up in the pumps, too, including a pair of jeans and a mop head. But that is a different story for a different day.
As the project is in its last stages of construction, passersby will see two relatively compact steel buildings constructed on the site where the lagoons are located, with one placed slightly higher than the other for the purposes of letting gravity do its job.
Inside those buildings, modern technology is doing its job with the water, which, after going through the system and being “cleaned”, is returned to the river.
“USDA has a strong fiduciary duty to use money wisely and create a positive impact,” Valdez says. “And this project is a perfect example of what is possible. This project is good for the people and good for the environment. Its successful completion may also help bridge that gap of understanding between rural and urban communities with a greater understanding of the need for foundational infrastructure in our smaller communities.”
Valdez went on to praise the “circular notion of state and federal tax dollars being used to benefit rural communities with the things they need to become stronger in the future. It’s a rural success story that needs to be told,” he says.
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