JC Regional Water Reclamation Facility

The City of Jefferson provides regional wastewater (sewage) collection and treatment for the citizens inside the corporate limits of Jefferson City, parts of Cole County between Jefferson City and St. Martins including Apache Flats, Westview Heights, and other subdivisions.

How the Treatment Process Works
Wastewater from Jefferson City residents and surrounding communities flows to the collection system through underground sewer lines.  Wastewater is pumped to the north side of the river where it enters the treatment plant headworks, which encloses three (3) fine screens and a grit removal system.  This preliminary part of the process removes materials that would cause damage to pumps, motors, and biological treatment.  These materials include rocks, gravel, food debris, and undissolvable matter found in raw wastewater.

The wastewater then flows into the Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) basin for secondary treatment.  The SBR is a biological treatment system which combines many of the conventional processes into one basin.  Within the basin there are time periods allotted for aeration, settling and decanting.  The aeration period provides air and mixing of the wastewater for the decomposition of organic materials by microorganisms. The settling period allows the suspended solids to settle to the bottom of the basin.  These solids are removed as waste activated sludge (WAS) to the thickener.  The settling period is followed by a decant period, where a decanter arm lowers into the basin removing the clear supernatant from the top.  The decant water is referred to as plant effluent and is discharged into the receiving stream, the Missouri River.

A small portion of the effluent goes into simulated wetlands also located at the facility.  The wetlands provide an educational opportunity for the public to see the effluent as it sustains aquatic life.

Biosolids Processing
Solids removed during the treatment process are dewatered by the belt presses and stabilized with lime prior to field application.  Several acres are available for land application of the biosolids that are an effective fertilizer source to City and local farmers fields.

Waste hauler permit application

Contact Information
Reclamation Facility       Phone: (573) 634-6444      Fax: (573) 634-6561

Staff
Clara Haenchen, Manager    Phone: (573) 634-6502          
Jacob Schwoerer, Laboratory/Pretreatment Manager             
Bradley Kleffner, Interim Operations Supervisor               
Brad Engelbrecht, Maintenance Supervisor