Catching Greenhouse Gases At Wastewater Plants

For years, the clearest way for wastewater utilities to cut greenhouse gas emissions was to use less energy. Now they’re taking a closer look at emissions that don’t show up on a power bill, including some produced by the same bacteria that help clean the water.

Jeremy Kraemer, wastewater technical director at GHD, traces methane and nitrous oxide through sewers, treatment tanks, and digesters. There’s some fascinating biology here: the process that removes ammonia to protect rivers can also release nitrous oxide, and the way operators run the plant can affect how much escapes.

So how much is a particular plant releasing? Kraemer explains why industry averages are useful for a first estimate but can’t substitute for measuring at the plant, and why that extra work can pay off. At a facility that uses biogas for energy, for example, finding and fixing a methane leak means saving fuel as well as cutting emissions.

The conversation comes back to a practical decision for utilities: where to start, especially when there’s no rule telling them to act. Kraemer makes the case for taking on fixes that make sense today, then using what operators learn to decide where to spend the next dollar.

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