History

Early 1930's:

The first sewage treatment system in the City was constructed.  The system consisted of a large septic tank with a submerged outlet into the Grand River, located immediately downstream of the Wilson Ave bridge on the south river bank.

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1964:

Growth in population necessitated the construction of the City's first sewage treatment plant.  It was located near the Grand River between Buck and Rush Creeks at the western city limits.  It was an activated sludge type of plant, designed to treat 1.6 million gallons of raw sewage per day and remove approximately 80 percent of the influent sewage solids and Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD).

1968:

Ottawa County communities of Georgetown Township and the City of Hudsonville connected their sanitary sewer systems to the Grandville plant.

1971:

In order to accommodate Grandville's growth, as well as the addition of Georgetown Township and Hudsonville, expansion was necessary.  Once completed, the upgraded plant provided 100% more hydraulic capacity as well as the ability to remove phosphorus, which was identified as a serious pollutant.

1988:

The plant was expanded to increase the treatment capacity to 4.4 million gallons per day.  Equipment was added to provide local farmers with the plant's residual Biosolids for agricultural fertilizer.

1999:

Backup generators were added to provide system reliability during power outages.  Also, effluent disinfection improvements removed the hazard of chlorine gas and replaced it with Ultra Violet Light (UV) disinfection technology.

2008:

The expiration of the initial agreement between Grandville and Ottawa County prompted a review of plant design for future needs.  A new service agreement was reached that provided for renovation upgrades and plant expansion.

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2012:

Renovation upgrades and plant expansion are completed.  These included additional aeration capacity for the activated sludge treatment process, additional UV disinfection, a new anaerobic digester with a combined  heat and power system, and a laboratory and operations center.  The  plant now has a capacity to treat 10.0 Million Gallons a day.