Recycling Plastics Now Easier than Ever!
Starting July 1, 2015 we have streamlined plastics recycling into just TWO BINS: rigid plastics and flexible plastics. Plastic bottles and containers are #1-#7 rigid plastics (water bottles, jars, cups, storage containers, and more). It is no longer necessary to separate #1s and #2s. Just what is flexible plastic or plastic film? Plastic bags and wraps are the soft, flexible polyethylene plastic used in many grocery, bread, zip-top & dry cleaning bags. It’s also used in packaging paper plates, bathroom tissue, diapers, etc. Thanks to a partnership with Trex Recycling in Winchester,...
Read MoreCrew Breaks Through 1600 feet of Rock for New Rivanna Pump Station Tunnel
Charlottesville, VA— September 29, 2015 After five months of work, the Rivanna Water & Sewer Authority contractors have successfully tunneled through about 1,600 feet of rock (6,000 cubic yards), officially reaching the destination at the existing Rivanna Pump Station located adjacent to the City’s Riverview Park in the Woolen Mills area. The construction crew and engineers witnessed the 11′-3″ diameter, 175 foot long tunnel boring machine (affectionately named Ms. Chelsea, pictured below) breaking into the exit shaft at about 1pm on Tuesday, September 29 as a part of the...
Read MoreA Day in the Life of a Lab Technician
Our three full-time laboratory specialists complete over 7,700 lab tests annually to ensure that your drinking water meets all federal and state regulations. We also test the wastewater to assist operational staff in maintaining daily treatment process balance and to ensure that the final effluent meets and exceeds federal and state standards. Lab technicians count and identify algae populations in the reservoirs to help prevent harmful blooms, and analyze water and wastewater for coliform and E. coli bacteria, nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorous), metals, oxygen demand and solids. A...
Read MorePowering Moores Creek with Renewable Energy
Part of the anaerobic digestion of biosolids from our wastewater creates renewable energy for us on site in the form of methane gas. On average, Rivanna produces 32,725,000 cu ft of methane each year that is captured for use at our Moores Creek Water Resource Recovery facility. A cogenerator burns the gas and produces electrical power that can be distributed within the facility’s internal grid, thereby reducing the amount of external energy that we are required to purchase to run our operations.
Read MoreRagged Mountain Dam Wins Award
The Rivanna Water & Sewer Authority and Schnabel Engineering were recognized as Honor Award Winners for engineering excellence at an American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) of Virginia Gala in Richmond on Thursday evening. The award was presented for the new Ragged Mountain Dam project. Among the design features recognized in the presentation of the award was its inlet/outlet tower and auxiliary spillway, its seepage reduction control features, its real time monitoring and rapid response to safety or security concerns, and its protection of the rural charm to include the use of...
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