Innovative Solutions to Diverting Water Treatment Solids

The City of Tempe is a thriving community in the center of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. Serving a population of over 190,000 residents, as well as the Arizona State University Tempe Campus, the City aims to provide high quality services and resources for its growing number of community members and visitors. As a municipality focused on sustainability and innovation, the City of Tempe Public Works Department is committed to optimizing all available resources to achieve environmental, financial, and community goals as outlined in the Tempe Climate Action Plan. Thus, the Water Utilities Division is collaborating with undergraduate chemical engineering capstone students through the ASU Project Cities program to explore innovative opportunities to reuse or dispose of solids from water treatment sludge to divert the waste from landfill. Students will develop and propose solutions for reuse or diversion that meet regulatory standards and align with existing municipal resources, provide a cost-benefit analysis of the proposed solutions, and identify and describe opportunities for public sector and/or public-private partnerships to support proposed reuse or diversion efforts.