Located on the mouth of the Black River on Lake Erie, the city of Lorain, Ohio, has a long history dating back to the area’s original settlement in the early 19th century. The community of more than 64,000 people is proud of its history and heritage as one of the state’s most important centers of steel manufacturing, but the march of time has presented the city with the same challenge faced by a growing number of communities across the United States, as its water and wastewater infrastructure continues to age and approach obsolescence. 

Director of Utilities Mary Ivan-Garza says her department is working hard to see that Lorain has the infrastructure it needs not only for the present day but for the future, and that is its most pressing issue at the moment. Ivan-Garza is well-versed in the city’s utility operations, having started with the city as a meter clerk in 1987. Over the years, she has held positions including various positions at the Black River Waste Water Treatment Plant, as Engineer Aide in the City Engineer’s office, and Environmental and Safety Manager before assuming her current position.  

She says that throughout her career, she has been impressed by the expertise and skill of the people surrounding her in the department, calling them the most important element of the utilities department’s success. “We do have some very great employees, and employees are our greatest asset,” she says. “That makes a big difference and I am very proud of the people I have working here.” 

The city’s utilities department is responsible for the purification and distribution of Lorain’s drinking water, operating and maintaining the city’s two wastewater treatment facilities as well as the city’s water and sewage lines. The city’s Black River treatment plant was built in the 1950s, and today treats more than 12 million gallons of wastewater per day from Lorain and nearby Sheffield Lake. Built in 1988, the city’s PQM Waste Water Treatment Plant was added in response to growth on the city’s west side, and is capable of handling up to 15 million gallons of wastewater per day. 

Making Improvements

With so much of the city’s infrastructure built more than 30 years ago, Ivan-Garza says keeping all of it maintained and upgraded has been one of Lorain’s primary concerns from a utility standpoint. She says the attitude regarding utility infrastructure around the country has been “out of sight, out of mind,” with many communities allowing their infrastructure to become outdated or fall into disrepair. Because these needs have gone unaddressed for so long, many communities are now faced with the prospect of having to pay for sweeping improvements practically all at once, so funding is a major component of the challenge presented by this situation.

For its part, Lorain’s utilities department is working hard to take care of its infrastructure and its most urgent needs. Over the last few years, the city has installed relief sanitary sewer to help alleviate the sanitary sewer overflows and meet federal EPA standards. A sanitary sewer conveyance tunnel is also currently under construction to prevent and hopefully eliminate all overflows. Ivan-Garza says the city also has replaced more than $7 million worth of water lines per year throughout the community in recent years. Nevertheless, the department’s work will need to continue to keep up with the needs of its infrastructure – Ivan-Garza says the city’s two wastewater treatment plants will both require some work to update and improve them in the very near future. 

Keeping Up

Keeping the department focused on the future requires more than monetary resources, and Ivan-Garza says the other pressing need in the department is keeping up with the retirements of key personnel. If the city doesn’t concentrate on the next generation of employees, she argues, it will find itself struggling to keep up with the loss of experience and seniority. “We have the challenge, as many others do here in the state, of getting enough individuals with Ohio EPA certifications and getting them trained and moved up through the system,” she says. 

Keeping the department up to speed with the latest developments in technology also is crucial for its continued success, and Ivan-Garza says the city is considering new methods of dealing with the sludge generated from its water treatment plants. Currently, sludge drying bags are in place, where the alum sludge is pumped, dewatered and is then hauled to a landfill. Although this method has been effective for years, there are more efficient and cost-effective methods out there, and Ivan-Garza says the city is exploring the possibility of utilizing centrifuges to dry the sludge or perhaps hauling it to another community to be treated more cost-effectively.

Keeping up with the demands of the future will be challenging for Lorain and its utilities department, but Ivan-Garza says that as long as the city remains dedicated to having the best and brightest people on staff to meet those challenges, its future will be secure.