It’s important to us that our wastewater facilities to be a good neighbor to the people who live, work and play near them. Part of being a good neighbor means that we work hard to control odors / smells that come from the wastewater treatment process—which can get gassy! Why does sewage smell? Treating dirty water at…
Built in 1966, West Point Treatment Plant is the largest wastewater treatment plant by volume in Washington state, and the third largest by average daily flow on the West Coast. Like much of the King County wastewater system, it’s more than 55 years old and many of it’s components reach their “end of life” each…
Restoring natural areas after construction is an important part of our work. When we work on improving or fixing the regional sewer system, sometimes impacts are unavoidable. When construction impacts sensitive areas and landscapes, our contractor restores the site before the project is complete. That’s what happened at Discovery Park in Seattle, and this spring…
Our employees plan, design, build and operate treatment facilities to clean wastewater for the region. As part of that, they often participate in teaching students about the wide variety of careers in clean water, especially as they relate to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Employees are also often involved in local and regional equity…
We don’t just treat wastewater! One of the things our utility does is education on water issues and solutions for students and community members. When we couldn’t do in-person teaching due to COVID-19, our utility’s education team adapted many of our programs to be online. Recently, we partnered with the Snohomish Conservation District to offer…
Across King County, there are gardens on rooftops, behind buildings, and nestled in unused parking lots. These spaces draw people from their apartments, homes, and living spaces. People connect with the land—even in the most unlikely of places. Community gardens are a public good. They provide greenspaces in concrete jungles. They help combat food insecurity…
Let’s face it, when you think of Green Jobs or STEM careers, you don’t immediately think of jobs involving wastewater. But wastewater jobs are all about keeping our water resources clean for now and the future. Each year, our utility’s education team introduces local youth and college students to careers that keep our water clean.…
Power disruptions during heavy rainfall As a clean water agency, our mission is to protect public health and the environment. We work 24/7 to serve over 1.8 million residents and clean about 190 million gallons of water per day. Even in massive rainstorms that generate more volume than the system can handle, we feel any…
We clean wastewater for the region Pipes from homes and businesses in this area connect to local sewer systems. Then those local utility pipes connect to our bigger pipes, which carry wastewater to one of our regional treatment plants where we clean it. The local agencies own and operate their independent collection systems. The local…
CitySoil Farm at King County’s South Treatment Plant in Renton was able to donate 3,762 lbs. of fresh, culturally-relevant fruits and vegetables to the White Center Food Bank this year – even thought we had to cancel our in-person education programs and volunteers. In a typical year, our utility’s education team brings hundreds of students…
Our business is unconventional – and that works for a lot of our employees We get it. Any of us who work here at King County’s Wastewater Treatment Division (WTD) have been asked what we do for a living – and we’ve seen the smirks and heard the giggles when we explain we help run…
