By GRAHAM BROOKS / Staff Writer

HELENA–Construction and mandatory upgrades to the city of Helena’s waste water treatment facility is underway a few months after the city approved of the project in order to be in compliance with federal regulations.

A low bid for the multi-million dollar project was accepted on Aug. 6 and awarded to Max Foote Construction Co., LLC.

In month’s prior, Helena Mayor Mark Hall said the Alabama Department of Environmental Management had notified the city a few years ago that certain changes must be made and Hall and other officials worked diligently to reduce the overall cost of the project.

“The facility will undergo major process changes and bring in new technology to meet permit regulations,” said Hall. “We needed to do this and the processes will be more efficient and more environmentally friendly.”

Project Manager and Vice President of Garver Brian Shannon provided a detailed summary of the improvements and construction that will take place over the next year.

“These improvements include rehabilitation of the existing secondary clarifiers and replacement of the existing mechanisms, new tertiary filtration equipment, new chemical storage and feed facilities and new UV disinfection equipment,” said Shannon. “The improvements at the plant will increase the effluent quality and help ensure that the discharge from the plant into Buck Creek and the Cahaba River Basin exceeds environmental regulations, thus protecting one of the most ecologically diverse river basins in Alabama.”

The construction at the waste water facility is expected to run through 2016.