Critical Repairs
By Art Harvath

The Huntington Sanitary Board’s financial problems have been in the news for over a year, especially since the City Council has rejected repeated HSB requests for sewer rate increases. The Board is delinquent in its bond payments, and it is still unsure if can meet a $500,000 loan payment due on December 10.
Very little has been said publicly about other repairs the HSB must make to satisfy federal, state and local permit requirements. Mike Copley, operations superintendent for the HSB, addressed this issue to the Sanitary Board at a September, 2003 meeting.
“This is a list of priority maintenance projects that need to be done and need to be done now,” Copley told the Sanitary Board. “These projects have been on hold because of no funding. These projects directly affect our permits or can affect our permits and they are high-dollar projects. They are projects that must be done and acted on immediately,” he said. Copley said the materials and parts they need for the repairs could take up to 16 weeks to receive. “They are not over-the-counter parts,” he said.
Copley said that the HSB’s primary plant is over 40 years old, and the secondary plant is over 20 years old. The incinerator, which broke down Tuesday is 15 years old, and it may cost as much as $350,000 to repair. There are more than 25 outlying duplex submersible pump stations the HSB maintains and 151 single pump installations on the Inwood-Shockey project. Following is a list of critical repairs Copley submitted to the HSB in September. Total costs of the repairs could total over $100,000.


Four Pole Lift Station: #2 pump has burned out and has been out for quite a while. Estimated cost of repair is $16,000.

Treatment Plant Substation: two 34,500 Kv transformers and air switches are due for testing and proper operation. Also a 4,160 volt switch gear needs tested and calibrated. This is a high priority safety issue. Estimated cost is $10,000-$15,000.

Inwood/Shockey: In need of spare pump repairs and electrical parts. Three new pump pits and controls have to be installed in the near future. Estimated cost is $2,500.

#1 Process Air Blower: 700 horsepower motor has worn out bearings. Cost to rebuild $9,644. Cost to replace with modifications is approximately $16,000.

North DAF unit: Needs chain, sprockets, shafts, and bearings. This unit has been down for an extended period of time. If the South DAF unit fails there will be no way to process secondary activated sludge. Estimated cost of repairs is $34,000.

Secondary Scum Pumps 1 through 4: Pumps in need of overhaul. Estimated costs per pump is $2,300.

Secondary Plant: Electrical junction boxes in need of replacement due to sever corrosion. Estimated cost is $3,000. The cost to replace lighting and conduit is unknown.

Primary Sludge Tanks: Metal work and isolation gates are in bad shape due to age and the environment. Most gates are minimal to non-functional. Estimated cost of repairs is unknown.

Scada: Presently there are very few spare parts. In dire need of electronic boards and accessories. Cost unknown.