i

vated sludge treatment and a range of appro-
priate treatment technologies for three com-
munity sizes. There are two appropriate tech-
nology bars for each community size. They
indicate the high and low cost in the range of
costs for the various appropriate systems.
For communities of 3,500 people, activated
sludge treatment averages about $120 per
household per year, while appropriate tech-
nologies range from $50 to $90. Trickling fit
ters and oxidation ditches tend to be in the
higher part of the range while lagoons and
land treatment tend toward the lower cost
tange. Note that:
@ With 75% Federal funding, operation and
maintenance makes up most of the house-
hold cost;
© Most facilities are built with some reserve
Capacity for future users. Initial users will like-
ly pay higher charges than those shown until
future users come on line.

For a small community, the cost of con-
ventional sewers accounts for 80%-90% of
the total cost to build a wastewater collection
and treatment system. Alternative sewers
can greatly reduce collection system costs.

Figure 3 shows total annual household
costs of collection systems for communities
with less than 10,000 people.

The costs shown in the graph are for ideal
conditions: flat ground, good soil, and no
groundwater problems. In hilly areas, the con-
‘lan leat ta ae gine

alternative sewers qualify for 85% funding.

Figure 3

old-Costs for Treatment

Annual Household Costs for Sewers
ge Flow

|

Population


The
Right Stuff
Saves Money

Information:

1 Boston

2 New York
3 Philadelphia
4 Atlanta

5 Chicago

6 Dallas

7 ~Kansas

8 Denver

Appropnate technology can benefit your town
in many ways

@ Lower cost to build, operate, maintain,

@ Lower user costs,

@ Less energy use,

@ Less sludge,

@ Simpler to operate

Get more facts on appropnate technology
from

@ EPA Small Wastewater Flows Cleanng-
house

West Virginia University
Morgantown, WV 26506
800-624-8301 or 293-4191 (in West Virginia)

@ EPA Foldout on 21 Small Wastewater
Systems (FRD-10),

@ EPA Onsite Wastewater Treatment and
Disposal Systems Design Manual,

@ EPA Innovative and Altemative Technolo-
gy Assessment Manual (MCD-53)

®@ Your EPA Regional Office

(Conn, Maine, Mass. NH, RI, Vt)
JFK Federal Building, Boston, MA 02203
617-223-7210

(NJ.NY,PR,VI)
26 Federal Plaza, New York, NY 10007
212-264-2525

(Del, Md, Pa, Va, WVa, DC)
6th & Wainut Sts , Philadelphia, PA 19108
215-597-9814

(Ala, Ga, Fla, Miss, NC,SC, Tenn, nay)
345 Courtland St, N'E, Atlanta, GA
404-881-4727

(il, Ind, Ohio, Mich, Minn, Wis ,)
230 S Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60604
339.353 2000

(Ark , La, Okla. Tex, N Mex)
1201 Elm St, Dallas, TX 75270
214-767-2600

(towa, Kans , Mo, Neb}
324E 1ith st, Kansas City, MO 64108
816-374-5493

(Colo, Utah, Wyo, Mont. ND, SD)
1860 Lincoln St, Denver, CO 80203
303-837-3895

$9 San Francisco (Anz, Calif, Guam, Hawai, Nev , Amer Samoa,

10 Seattle

Trust Terntones of the Pacific)
215 Fremont St, San Francisco, CA 94105
415-974-8088

(Alaska, Idaho, Oreg , Wash }
1200 6th Ave , Seattle, WA 98101
206-442-5810


Treatment

Figure 1

© Centralized treatment costs are for a com-
plete, custom-built system, including sludge
handling.

© Collection system costs include the cost
of house sewers.

© Costs for onsite systems are for 25%-
50% replacement of existing onsite systems.
The cost of an onsite system management
Program is also included.

© Land would cost $1,500 per acre.

‘Construction Costs
Construction costs for a wastewater treat-
ment facility cover the cost to build it and re-
lated costs such as engineering and legal fees.

Ph cts er shee epee

of conventional and appropriate treatment
systems. These are the costs a community
would pay to build a treatment facility with
po ie eat The range of costs for

appropriate technologies is indicated by the
shaded band.

For a community of 3,500, conventional
activated sludge has an average cost of $1.2
‘million. Compare this with appropriate tech-
op A They range from $500,000 to

1 million.

Household Cost

* A community's cost to treat wastewater con-

sists of two parts. One is its share of the
Cost to build the facility. The other is the cost
to operate and maintain it and replace equip-
ment as it wears out. Household cost is the
annual amount a typical customer pays to
cover these costs.

Figure 2 shows household costs for acti-

Figure 2

Construction Costs for Treatment Annual Household: Cc



ift

of

fff

Although not included in this cost informa-
tion, vacuum sewers have shown promise in
certain situations.

Unsewered communities may need a com-
plete wastewater system. This can mean
sewers and a treatment facility or upgraded
onsite systems with a management program.
The most suitable approach may be a central
system for part of your community and
onsite or cluster systems for the remainder.
Figure 4 compares the total annual costs of
a conventional system (activated sludge with
gravity sewers) to costs for appropriate cen-
tralized and onsite technologies for three
community sizes.
Appropriate systems cost less than con-
ventional systems in all three communities.
Onsite systems cost the least. They need lit-
tle or no sewering and qualify for 85% Feder-
al funding.
Households in a community of 3,500
would pay about:
© $60-$130 a year for onsite systems;
© $120-$200 a year for appropriate treat-
ment and collection;
© $300 a year for a conventional system
under best conditions for gravity sewers.
Hilly, rocky, or wet conditions would widen
the cost difference between appropriate and
conventional central systems. Onsite system
costs may increase under the same conditions.

After Sept. 30, 1984, the EPA funding share

Levels of of a project's cost will decrease from 75% to
Funding 55%. The EPA share for innovative or alterna-

tive technology goes from 85% to 75%. The

Figure 4 Figure 5
Annual Household Cost Comparison for Annual Household Costs at Varic
Total System
Treatm
Community] Federal,
Population one A
76 270
1,000 55 320
0 470
75 120
3,500 55 150
0 220
5 70.
10,000 55 9.9 |
i a 4301...
Note: Altemative Technology Federal ‘



a

Lyd

EPA

United States Revised
Environmental Protection September
1983

Agency

Less Costly
Wastewater
Treatment

for Your town



EPA share may be reduced further after
Sept. 30, 1985, when Congressional au-
thonzation for EPA‘s grant program expires

Figure 5 shows how vanous Federal
funding levels (75%, 55%, 0%) would affect
household costs for communities of 1,000,
3,500, and 10,000

For a town of 3,500, reduction of the EPA
share from 75% to 55% means a 50% in-
Crease in the household costs for a con-
ventional system It means a 33% to 53% in-
crease for appropriate technology Household
costs nearly tnple for a total system with
either technology when there 1s no Federal
funding At 55% funding, onsite system
household costs increase about 50% With-
out Federal funds they would double or triple

Other Cost isn’t the only factor to consider in
Factors choosing a wastewater system

© Conventional treatment plants are more
difficult to operate than appropnate systems
They're generally more sensitive to flow var-
lations They use more energy but are less
sensitive to cold climates than most appropn-
ate technologies

@ Lagoons and land treatment have low
sludge disposal needs but they need more
land than the other technologies

@ There is less seepage of clear water into
alternative sewers, so flow at the treatment
plant is less

@ Small-diameter gravity sewers and some
Pressure sewers transport wastewater from
septic tanks This means the wastewater has
had some treatment when it reaches the
treatment facility

ious Levels of Federal Funding ($ per year)

nent Collection Total System
Appropriate (Conventional | Appropriate |Conventional| Centralized | Onsite
‘Appropnate

120-230 230 100-150 500 220-380 | 60-130
130-270 390 150-200 710 280-470 | 90-240
200-400 840 510-540 1310 710-940 | 140-440

50-90 180 70-110 300 120-200 | 60-130
50-110 300 110-150 450 160-260 | 90-240
880

90-170 660 400-420 490-590 | 140-440
30-50 140 60-100 210 90-150 60-130
30-60 250 90-130 340 120-190 | 90-240
60-90 530 320-350 660 380-440 | 140440

Shares 85%, 75%. 0%



The Right Stuff: Choosing the

If your town needs to build, upgrade or re-
place its sewerage system, you'll want to
choose the nght system This means one
that will do the job but won't bankrupt the
community The key to getting the best sys-
tem at the lowest cost is choosing the nght
technology - the APPROPRIATE technology
for your town

Appropriate Appropriate technology means a simple sys-
Technology tem that your community has the means to
build, operate, and maintain and that provides
proper treatment for your wastewater
As Federal grants for wastewater facilities
phase down and State and local budgets be-
come tighter, appropriate technology takes
on even more importance

Conventional Conventional technologies are the popular

Technology methods used to collect and treat
wastewater Normally, they are not the best
alternative for a small community

Conventional Treatment

Conventional treatment plants are com-
plicated mechanical systems They were de-
veloped for larger cities to save space, but
they use large amounts of energy These
systems are generally costly for small com-
munities and need skilled operators Con-
ventional treatment most often uses a pro-
cess called activated sludge

Conventional Sewers

Conventional gravity sewers are the
wastewater collection method usually pre-
ferred, but the cost per household increases
greatly in rural areas and where the ground Is
hilly, rocky or wet

Appropriate = Appropnate technologies are generally more
Technology suitable for small communities because they
for Small are simpler to operate and less costly

Communities Treatment Systems

Simple and reliable treatment systems that
generally cost iess to build and operate in-
clude

@ Lagoons

© Land treatment
@ Thekling filters
@ Oxidation ditches

They generally use less energy than con-
ventional treatment


Appropriate System

Technology
Costs

for Small
Communities

Alternative Sewers

Alternatives to conventional gravity sewers
include

@ Pressure sewers
@ Smalldiameter gravity sewers

They are installed at shallow depths and do
not need the wide trenches or costly man-
holes of conventional sewers Many small
communities can best be served by a com-
bination of sewer technologies, e g con-
ventional gravity sewers in densely de-
veloped areas and alternative sewers in outly-
Ing areas

Onsite Systems

One of the most suitable technologies for
small unsewered communities or parts of
communities ts onsite systems Onsite sys-
tems such as mounds, sand filters.
alternating beds and low pressure distribution
can replace or upgrade failing septic systems

Where lot sizes or soil conditions aren't
suitable for onsite systerns, cluster systems
can be used Here, wastewater is conveyed
by small-diameter sewers to a neighborhood
drainfield, mound, or sand filter

Construction and operating costs for onsite
or cluster systems are usually low and the
systems can be very simple to operate The
key to their success !s an efficient organiza-
tion to manage their operation and mainte-
nance

The graphs shown here compare costs of
appropriate technologies to costs of con-
ventional technology A range of costs ts
shown for the vanous appropriate tech-
nologies

The information presented in the graphs
assumes

@ Costs are in September 1982 dollars

@ An average household produces 200 gal-
lons of wastewater a day

@ No wastewater flow from industries

@ 75% Federal funding (85% for alternative
technologies such as land treatment, alterna-

tive sewers and onsite systems) and no
State funding

@ All construction costs qualify for EPA
grant funding (For most projects, some costs
usually don’t qualify )

@ A 20-year loan at 12% interest to pay the
focal share of construction cost