City Of Lawton Addresses DEQ Violation Notice To Wastewater Plant

On May 15, 2024, the City of Lawton’s Department of Public Utilities responded to the Notice of Violation (NOV) issued by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ) on April 18, 2024 to the Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP).

View the official response to the NOV here: CoL WWTP NOV Response (https://www.lawtonok.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/2522/638513616289700000)

The NOV highlighted areas where the facility fell short of regulatory standards. The areas include exceeding permit limits for ammonia, CBOD5 (carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand), TSS (total suspended solids), as well as issues with dissolved oxygen (DO) levels.

The response to the NOV sent by the City of Lawton explains in detail unexpected equipment failures at the WWTP resulting in non-compliance. Also included in the response to the DEQ are measures that the City of Lawton is taking to provide mid-term and long-term solutions.

The events that led to non-compliance include the failure of an aeration basin blower, a scheduled rehabilitation of one trickling filter and high biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) influent BOD loading. These issues are explained in detail in the attached response.

Steps the City is taking to mitigate these issues include, but are not limited to mobilizing rental blowers, making modifications to improve the operation of the trickling filters, temporary chlorination and de-chlorination to bolster the UV disinfection system, and reseeding the aeration basin.

Additionally, the City is investing $100M in the WWTP through two phases. Given the urgency of the situation, the City has moved certain items originally planned for a third phase, into the second phase. The City is also requesting an eight-month extension to complete Phase I, resulting in a new completion date of August 2025.

The City has requested an in-person meeting with DEQ Officials to discuss actions taken to date, the path forward on the NOV items, as well as the request for an extension on the Phase 1 project.

The City takes this issue very seriously and is leveraging significant resources and funding mechanisms to put long-term solutions in place. We hope that the improvements and efforts demonstrated thus far are indicative of the City's desire to address this issue as soon as possible.