For Immediate Release
August 25, 2020
Borough of Phoenixville Waste Water Treatment Plant to upgrade to Hydrothermal Carbonization
Phoenixville: On August 17, 2020, Senator Andrew Dinniman announced the Borough of Phoenixville would be the recipient of $650,000 from the H20 Grant for its’ wastewater treatment plant upgrade to hydrothermal carbonization (HTC).
“Clean, safe and reliable water, sewer and wastewater treatment systems are vital to public health,” Senator Andrew Dinniman said. “These funds will help local municipalities provide necessary infrastructure upgrades to help ensure more efficient and more secure water systems for local residents and families.”
This project is a collaboration between the Borough of Phoenixville and SoMax Bioenergy that began in 2018. Once completed, this project will use organic waste as a resource for sustainable development and resilient waste management to create energy, clean water, and nutrients (fertilizer). Dan Spracklin of SoMax Bioenergy stated “This project will the be very first of its’ kind in the United States.”
In 2019, the Borough of Phoenixville was awarded a Chester County Community Revitalization Program Grant to help fund the HTC project in the amount of $402,000.
“We are grateful for the continued support from our County Commissioners and State Officials in our commitment to reducing our carbon footprint.”, said Jonathan Ewald, Borough Council President. The total project cost is estimated to be $4,200,000.00.
In September of 2017, the Borough of Phoenixville became the 44th municipality nationally and first in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to commit to transitioning municipal operations to 100% sustainable energy by the year 2035 with a resolution passed by Borough Council. The HTC project is a critical step to achieving this goal.
For further updates as this project continues, the public is encouraged to visit the Borough website at www.phoenixville.org and look for our page on Sustainability under the Community tab.
