2022 – King County Wastewater Treatment Division

Sustainability

December 15, 2022

Soil Restoration at Preston Mill Park

Soil is a critical piece of our natural systems and contributes to producing sufficient, safe, and more nourishing food for healthier plants, animals, and people. Soil also helps counteract biodiversity loss and climate change.

Marie Fiore

Community

December 15, 2022

Wheels to Water: Breaking Down Barriers to Education Opportunities

Each year, the WTD education team provides field trip programs that bring thousands of K-12 students to WTD facilities. Students come from school districts all over King County to participate in water-focused education programs.

Marie Fiore

People

December 12, 2022

Employee Spotlight: Drew Thompson, finalist for the Clean Tech Alliance Energy Leadership JEDI Award

This award, given by the Clean Tech Alliance, recognizes those who perform outstanding work to make the energy sector more equitable, support climate justice and diversity in the sector, and foster an inclusive ecosystem.

Marie Fiore

A group of 13 people smile at the camera and hold up their hands waving. They are standing or kneeling in the rain garden.

Community

August 16, 2022

Kent Meridian High School Rocks a Rain Garden

Kent Meridian students, teachers, and community members celebrated the completion of the rain garden June 2, 2022. Students have led the project from the beginning and were involved in all aspects of garden design.

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Aerial photos of the five treatment plants

Operations

August 11, 2022

Celebrating our award-winning treatment plants

All five of King County’s wastewater treatment plants received 2021 National Association of Clean Water Agency’s Peak Performance Awards, honoring multiple consecutive years of compliance with state and federal effluent permit limits.

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Community

August 1, 2022

Brightwater Public Art: Grandfather’s Wisdom

The carved and painted cedar sculpture, originally constructed in 2012, has been a centerpiece at the site for the last decade. Now, Artist Andrea Wilbur-Sigo is continuing her work to restore the large-scale sculptural installation at her studio.

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Infrastructure Operations

July 28, 2022

Flying Solo

The use of an RPAS—or Remotely Piloted Aircraft System—by the County began about six years ago, but it is only recently that WTD came to own and operate our own devices.

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The Georgetown station as viewed from the intersection.

Infrastructure Operations

July 18, 2022

The first Envision Platinum sustainability award in the state

King County’s Georgetown Wet Weather Treatment Station (WWTS) earned the coveted “Platinum” designation from the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure’s Envision rating system.

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Two men in hardhats and safety clothing stand smiling at the camera. A railing and trees are in the background.

Infrastructure Operations

May 27, 2022

If you live in the City of Carnation, do you know where water goes after you send it down the drain?

Unless you use a septic system, the water you send down the drain travels to King County’s Carnation Treatment Plant where we process about 111,000 gallons of wastewater every day.

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A person in a orange safety slicker and navy blue pants sweeps with a broom around concrete structures and industrial equipment

Operations

May 2, 2022

How King County businesses help protect public health & the environment through our Industrial Waste program

Not all types of waste can be filtered out during the treatment process, which is why our Industrial Waste Program is in charge of preventing pollution from entering the wastewater system in the first place.

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Women in a hardhat, safety vest, and goggles at a wastewater treatment plant pointing at a jar of water

Community

March 22, 2022

Making ‘potty talk’ entertaining, interactive, and educational on World Water Day!

When we are young, we are sometimes told “No potty talk,” but at King County Wastewater Treatment Division (WTD), we believe in more educational potty talk!

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A woman wastewater operator in a orange safety shirt, mask, gloves and googles, holds up water samples

Operations People

February 4, 2022

Wastewater could be a great career for you & we will PAY & train you to find out!

We needed a way to bring in talented, new people and help them get certified as quickly as possible. So we started an Operator-in-Training (OIT) program to find and train our own operators.

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