Category Archives: Construction

Construction, Repairs and Spills

UPDATE – Charlotte Water Responds to Wastewater Spill in Mallard Creek

Charlotte Water is actively repairing a 36” wastewater main that was broken by a tree after Monday evening’s storms. Staff estimates that 4.7 million gallons entered Mallard Creek just east of the intersection of N. Tryon St. and E. Mallard Creek Church Rd. where the break in the pipe was found Tuesday morning.

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View of fallen tree across Mallard Creek. White discharge of wastewater can be seen in foreground.

The break was discovered when staff at the Mallard Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant observed unusually low levels of wastewater flow entering the plant and worked quickly to determine the cause of the low flows. Field crews found the broken pipe just after noon on Tuesday and began notifying downstream residents, mobilizing resources to control the spill and design a repair. Bypass pumping was put in place and the spill ceased by 8:15 pm Tuesday.

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Broken pipe can be seen at left side of creek bank

“We detected the problem quickly, unfortunately it took us a few hours to find the spill location along Mallard Creek and control the discharge from the broken pipe,” says Deputy Director Ron Hargrove. “We have to estimate that the spill probably started during the storm or soon thereafter.”

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The wastewater is currently being fed by bypass pumps back to the wastewater treatment plant, so the spill is contained at this time. Crews from Storm Water Services have assisted Charlotte Water and contractors with removing debris from the creek. Representatives from NC Department of Environmental Quality have been on site to observe operations. Charlotte Water staff has been monitoring work and bypass pumps around the clock. Charlotte Water estimates work to repair the 36” wastewater main will continue for the next 48-72 hours.

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Pumps and temporary lines will carry wastewater from the end of the broken pipe overland to a nearby wastewater pipe so it can flow to the wastewater treatment plant during the repair

Charlotte Water maintains more than 4,300 miles of wastewater collection pipes across Mecklenburg County. Residents can report odors, unusual looking creeks or overflowing manholes by calling 311 anytime of day.

Construction, Repairs and Spills

Charlotte Water Responds to Wastewater Overflow in Mallard Creek

October 24, 2017 – Charlotte Water (CLTWater) crews responded to a broken wastewater pipe east of E. Mallard Creek Church Road, downstream of Kirk Farm Field Park on October 24th. Crews are working to estimate gallons that may have reached Mallard Creek.

CLTWater staff at the Mallard Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant observed lower than normal amounts of wastewater coming into the plant. Staff began checking manholes and pipes upstream to look for a cause of the lower flows. A broken pipe was discovered upstream of the plant in Mallard Creek. A fallen tree across the pipe has caused a 36” wastewater pipe to break, possibly due to Monday evening’s storm.

Charlotte Water is currently notifying downstream residents, mobilizing crews and resources to control the spill, and make repairs.

Updates will follow with details as they are available.

Mallard Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant is located in the Yadkin-PeeDee River basin.

Construction, Repairs and Spills

Sugar Creek WWTP Discharge of Highly Treated Wastewater

The Sugar Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant (near Fairview and Park road intersection) experienced an electrical outage in the afternoon of Tuesday October 17, 2017, and for approximately 12 minutes discharged highly treated wastewater to Little Sugar Creek that had not completed the normal treatment process. It is estimated 39,800 gallons was discharged from the final disinfection process over the 12 minute period. This is approximately 0.3% of the total flow of 11.1 million gallons of wastewater treated on that day. All NPDES treatment permit requirements were met for the day.

This water was completely treated (steps 1 through 4 below) with the exception of the final polishing step of ultraviolet disinfection (step 5 below) during the 12 minute power outage. No impacts to the stream were observed and none are expected.

Wastewater Treatment Process

  1. Primary Treatment – Solid particles & objects are captured by screens, grit chambers, and primary clarifiers.
  2. Aeration/Secondary Treatment – Wastewater is aerated to support growth of microorganisms that remove harmful pollutants.
  3. Clarification – Solids and microorganisms settle out in large basins.
  4. Advanced Treatment – Wastewater flows through granular filters to remove fine particles.
  5. UV Disinfection – Water is disinfected to remove any remaining pathogens, and then the treated water is released into creeks.
Construction, Project & Construction Update

Emergency Water Main Repair S. Trade St. Matthews

Charlotte Water is responding to a water main break on S. Trade Street, Matthews near Whitefriars Lane.

To keep the Hampton Green Subdivision in service, a temporary above ground water main has been installed at the S. Trade Street entrance.

Preparation work to repair the water main began today. Traffic will be impacted to complete the repair for the next 7-10 days beginning at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, August 15. At times, traffic will be reduced to one lane inbound (northbound) on S. Trade St. near Whitefriars Lane.

We apologize for the inconvenience this work will cause. Charlotte Water and contractors will be working 24 hours a day (barring any inclement weather) to complete the work as quickly as possible before the school year begins.

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact Andrew Brunnick , Charlotte Water – Project Manager at wbrunnick@ci.charlotte.nc.us or (704) 996-6717

Will there be any water service impacts? No, Charlotte Water does not expect any customer to be out of water service as a result of this work.

Will traffic be detoured? No, crews will be working only in the inbound (northbound) lanes of S. Trade St. Traffic lanes will be reduced at times and commuting delays are expected. Traffic will not be detoured.