Operations – King County Wastewater Treatment Division

Worker wearing blue gloves removes debris from a pump inside a wastewater facility.

Close-up of debris clogging an opening in a wastewater pump.

Mass of wipes and debris on the floor after being removed from wastewater pump.

Workers in safety gear examine control panels inside a pump station.

Worker in safety gear hoses down the wastewater wet well while holding a flashlight.

Wide view of a pump room with pipes and valves.

Operations Water Quality

August 18, 2026

Clogged, not forgotten: The hidden reality when you flush wipes

New equipment at a pump station in Shoreline offers hope for wastewater operators who respond regularly to messy wipe clogs.

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Gloved worker climbs into a maintenance hole, one arm braced on the rim, with the cover set aside on the pavement.

Infrastructure Operations

May 13, 2026

Inside the pipes that keep everything flowing

Beneath King County streets, crews inspect hundreds of miles of sewer pipes to help keep wastewater flowing reliably. Follow along with the conveyance inspection team as they send cameras and a remote-controlled crawler deep below the surface.

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Portrait of a maintenance worker wearing a hard hat and safety vest, holding a long trimming tool on a wooded path in fall.

Operations People

January 21, 2026

The senior gardener at South Treatment Plant sees the beauty in it all

For more than 20 years, Jim Davis has cared for the 90 acres around South Treatment Plant, bringing a careful eye and a sense of beauty to the everyday work that keeps the grounds thriving.

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Wastewater Treatment Operator Tyler Stiltner wearing a high visibility jacket stands near flooded land in Carnation.

Operations

December 12, 2025

Stranded but steady: Operator keeps Carnation Treatment Plant running during atmospheric river

When flooding cut off the Carnation Treatment Plant, Wastewater Operator Tyler Stiltner stayed onsite to keep it running.

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A WTD operator stands beside a large multi-cylinder generator used for emergency power.

Operations

November 26, 2025

Rainy season is here, meet our backup generators

Our backup generators and offsite operators work together to keep pumps and critical equipment running when storms take out the power.

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Two conveyance inspectors in high-visibility orange shirts and yellow hard hats standing behind a large sewer pipe-cleaning truck equipped with hoses and a control panel. One worker holds a remote control.

Infrastructure Operations People Sustainability Water Quality

September 12, 2025

New sewer cleaning truck extends the life of King County pipes

King County's new custom-built sewer cleaning truck uses high-pressure jets and filtered wastewater to clear debris from our 380-miles of pipe system.

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Three people in hard hats and safety vests tour an industrial facility, standing near a wall of metal pipes and yellow control boxes.

Operations Sustainability

August 13, 2025

When electrical demand peaks, South Plant quietly fires up its own power supply

When the region’s power grid is stretched, South Plant’s cogen system quietly switches on, generating its own electricity from biogas to keep the plant running and the community resilient.

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A group of firefighters in safety gear coordinates a rescue using ropes and equipment over an open hatch inside a treatment plant.

Operations

July 18, 2025

Firefighters train for real emergencies with rope rescue drill at South Plant

Joint training exercises at King County’s South Treatment Plant bring together firefighters and WTD staff to practice confined space rescues, using ropes, harnesses, and supplied air lines to keep everyone safe and ready for real emergencies.

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Four large engines painted in red and teal sit in a large industrial building.

Operations

May 8, 2025

West Point readies for new pump system to replace its aging ‘heartbeat’

The raw sewage pumps at West Point Treatment Plant perform a critical function, moving millions of gallons of wastewater and stormwater daily. Today, they are being upgraded to ensure reliability in our system.

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Infrastructure Operations

February 6, 2025

The Super Flush: A myth that won’t go down the drain

Every year, as millions gather for the Super Bowl, an old urban legend resurfaces.

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A gritty looking action figure sits on a concrete ledge above one of WestPoint’s engine rooms. The character is a white storm trooper from the movie Star Wars. His white suit and helmet are dirty. The concrete ledge that he sits on an off-white color and has many scuffs and scratches, the ledge takes up the bottom third of the photo, with a soft-focus view of an engine room in the distance and behind the action figure. The engine room is a floor down, it has three large engines that are a bright burnt orange color. The pipes and equipment connecting to the engine are a turquoise color that resembles Statue of Liberty’s color. Some grey and yellow piping and equipment are also visible throughout the room.

Operations WTD Updates

November 17, 2023

West Point’s odd collection of adorable mischief-makers displays so many careless flushes

Kids and adults alike are constantly flushing the darndest of objects down their toilet bowls. Some of these things – like wipes, napkins, condoms, and tampons – are well known culprits that clog pipes, jam up equipment, and gunk up…

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Operations

July 6, 2023

Mad scientist in the woods? Or, just another day at Vashon Treatment Plant

Elizabeth (Lizzy) Corliss has run the Vashon Treatment Plant for the last four years. Blink and you’d probably miss the driveway into Vashon Treatment Plant. Everything about this plant is pint-sized, a much scaled-down version of the massive clean water…

Marie Fiore