Pollard Wastewater System Improvements

Pollard, a small, rural town in Northeastern Arkansas, was facing compliance issues due to frequent wastewater plant effluent violations. This was brought about by the city’s outdated sand filtration system, which was incapable of meeting current effluent standards. To address this, the Arkansas Division of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) collaborated with the city and Heartland Engineering to develop a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) to outline a path forward for the city to return to compliance.

Heartland Engineering was enlisted to help Pollard secure multi-agency funding for necessary repairs, all while keeping user utility rates at a manageable level. The proposed new wastewater facility design features a non-discharging land application system. The new wastewater system collects effluent from the existing user-side septic tanks into a large lagoon. Wastewater is then land-applied in a controlled fashion by the system operator when conditions are favorable. This approach offers great operational flexibility, allowing the operator to manage the timing and volume of wastewater application. Bermuda Hay is grown on the land application site to remove nitrogen from the waste stream. Additionally, ultraviolet disinfection will be used to deactivate any potential pathogens in the final waste stream.

Non-discharging land application systems are both environmentally friendly and cost-effective for small municipalities, providing a sustainable solution for wastewater management. Heartland Engineering is pleased to support Pollard in bringing this design to fruition.