Utilities Division The City of Wooster utilities division extends a commitment to excellence in public service through the proper treatment, protection, and preservation of the cities water resources.
The Lab
This is the Water Treatment Plants Laboratory, where multiple tests are conducted . Some of the tests are Suspended Solids, BioChemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), pH, Ammonia, Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen (TKN), Total Solids, Total Volatile Solids, Phosphorus, Oil & Grease, and Total Residual Chlorine.
This room is used for Fecal Coliform and Mercury tests. Fecal Coliforms are bacteria found in the intestines of warm-blooded animals. They are generally harmless, but indicate the presence of sewage. We chlorinate in the summer in order to reduce the numbers of disease-causing organisms.
This is the ICP (Inductively Coupled Plasma) machine, which is used to run metals. It is computer-controlled, cost about $80,000, and is made by Leeman Labs. Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Nickel, Zinc, Silver, Arsenic, Molybdenum, Selenium, Iron, and Manganese are all ran on this machine.
This purpose of the Pretreatment Officer is to regulate to sewage discharges of industries that have the ability to impact the Sewage Plant by releasing excessive amounts of nutrients or toxic substances. These industries are given discharge limits and their sewage is tested on a regular basis. In addition, industry sewage which is significantly stronger than average is tested and the industry are surcharged proportionately.
