1. Bergen County Utilities Authority Little Ferry, NJ
Superstorm Sandy & BCUA’s Energy Resiliency Plan
Dominic L. DiSalvo, PE, BCEE
Richard M. Cestone, PE, CHMM
Water and Energy Nexus in Disaster Workshop
November 6, 2013
Welcome
Intros

2. Agenda
Overview of BCUA’s Little Ferry Water Pollution Control Facility (WPCF)
Overview of Superstorm Sandy Impacts
Overview of BCUA Mitigation Approach and Energy Resiliency
Details on the Combined Heat and Power (CHP) System Upgrade and Additional CHP
Black Start Capabilities
Questions

3. BCUA Little Ferry Water Pollution Control Facility
In service since 1951
Expanded through the 1970s, 80s and 90s.
Design Capacity: 109 MGD Maximum Month
Provides secondary treatment.
Discharges treated water into the Hackensack River.
The BCUA owns and operates seven pumping stations in the Little Ferry WPCF collection (sewer) system.
(Municipalities in service area own sewers and combined sewer overflows.)
BCUA
BCUA Info

4. BCUA Service Area Little Ferry WPCF Serves about 536,000 residents.
46 municipalities
Commercial/Industrial
METLIFE Stadium
Others
Map of the BCUA Service Area

5. Impacts of Superstorm Sandy
100-Year Flood Impacts
Loss of Service Costs: $1M per hour
Systems
Power/Alternate Power
BCUA Preparedness and Successes during Response
Explain the impacts of HS
The FEMA value of lost wastewater service should be included as follows:  The value of the downtime of Little Ferry WPCF facility in terms of costs per hour during a wastewater service outage will be (540,000 x $45) / 24 based on the following: Service population x FEMA dollar value per capita per day for lost wastewater service / hours per day, or $1.01 Million dollars per hour
Lessons learned
BCUA Successes
Unresolved Issues?

7. Restoration Asset inventory of damage
Systems level plan for restoration
Scopes of work and cost estimates submitted to FEMA
Restoration
Restoration Steps
Estimated costs

8. Superstorm Sandy and the Future
Flood Elevations
Superstorm Sandy and the Future
Estimated Superstorm Sandy Elevation on site: feet
Proposed 100-Year Storm Elevation for the Area: 9.0 feet
Proposed 500-Year Storm Elevation: feet
Design Storm for Mitigation: 100-Year (9.0 feet) + 2-foot freeboard + 1-foot Sea Level Rise = 12.0 feet
Flood level protection

9. Plant–wide Mitigation
Plan for improvements to mitigate future impacts
Tiered prioritization of “at risk” components
Scopes of work and cost estimates submitted to FEMA
Mitigation Steps
Estimated costs

10. Mitigation Tiers
Tier 1: Moving wastewater (WW) out of the collection system
Tier 2: Conveyance through the plant and disinfection
Tier 3: Primary and secondary treatment
Tier 4: Operations
Tier 5: Ancillary

11. BCUA Power Supply
Power supply is critical to maintaining service to the community.
Loss of power supply:
No wastewater (sewage) treatment
Wastewater will remain in the collection system.
Backup into the community
Local health and safety issues
According to FEMA, lost wastewater service is equivalent to $45/person/day:
- At 536,000 residents = $24M per day ($1M per hour)
Poor power quality:
Potential damage to plant equipment
Power supply mitigation
This is the most critical initiative for which we are pursuing funding.
Overview of this plan.

12. BCUA Power Supply Existing BCUA Power Supply: PSE&G electrical grid
Biogas powered generators (natural gas from PSE&G available)
Backup emergency generators (kerosene fuel)
During Superstorm Sandy:
Power fluctuations in PSE&G electrical grid
Equipment damage
BCUA took itself off the PSE&G electrical grid
BCUA operated emergency generators

13. Power Supply Mitigation
Goal: Maintain wastewater service at all times, including outage/fluctuations in the PSE&G electrical power grid.
Approach: Create a new power supply microgrid as the primary source of electricity. The PSE&G electrical power grid will be the secondary or standby source.
Based on the expansion of existing biogas powered CHP electric generator system.
Use sustainable primary fuel – Biogas from the on-site digestion of sewage sludge (biosolids), brown grease and food organics.
Use natural gas from the PSE&G piping network as the secondary or standby fuel for CHP.
Power supply mitigation
This is the most critical initiative for which we are pursuing funding.
Overview of this plan.

14. Power Supply Backup Mitigation
New Power Supply Microgrid Project will include:
New third CHP electric generator
New energy efficient aeration blowers
Upgrades to the digester system to enhance on-site biogas fuel production and provide storage
New brown grease and food waste receiving and processing system to augment biogas production
Power Supply Mitigation
New Power Supply Microgrid to maintain Wastewater service at all times including during outage of PSE & G power grid.
New third Biogas powered Combined Heat and Power electric generator
New energy efficient aeration blowers
Upgrades to sewage sludge digester system to provide on-site  biogas fuel production and storage
Accept and process brown grease and food organics from outside sources to produce biogas fuel for CH & P electric generators
New power supply microgrid will be the lead source of power and on continuously, and the PSE & G power line grid will be the lag, or standby source of electricity to run the facility. In a similar philosophy, the biogas produced from digesting sewage sludge, brown grease, and food organics will be the lead source of sustainable fuel for the C H & P electric generators, and purchased piped in natural gas from the PSE & G piping grid will be the lag or standby fuel. The exact language and format is flexible.

15. Other Power Supply Mitigation
Protect key power supply assets from flooding at the design flood elevation.
Main Substation:
Raise electrical components.
Switchgear Building and Cogeneration Building:
Dry proof walls.
Install flood-resistant entrances.
Install a flood wall around the building.
Raise the transformer outside the Cogeneration Building. P

16. BCUA’s History of Biogas Use
In 1995, the BCUA installed 1.3 MW caterpillar gas fired engines for their air blower system providing air to their aeration tanks. The engines were designed to burn natural gas and biogas.
The BCUA cut a deal with PSEG. This Standard Offer Agreement with PSEG would provide a cost savings if biogas was used in the engines. When the engines started, however, silicon dioxide – a product of combustion of siloxanes – caused increases of NOx and CO emissions and PSEG considered revoking the Standard Offer.
The BCUA installed a carbon absorption system removing the siloxanes, thus lowering emissions and the Standard Offer remained.

17. BCUA’s History of Biogas Use

18. BCUA’s History of Biogas Use

19. CHP Cogeneration Facility
The BCUA blower engine success was the model for installation of other engines burning biogas.
Based on the lessons learned from the blower engines, the BCUA constructed an CHP Cogeneration Facility at their Little Ferry WPCF in 2006.
Two 1.4 MW General Electric (GE) Jenbacher internal combustion engines were installed and have the capability of burning both natural gas and biogas generated from the anaerobic digesters. This resulted in…

20. CHP Cogeneration Facility

21. CHP Cogeneration Facility
The CHP plant located next to the Blower Engine Building commenced operation in 2008.
The plant was able to save over $11 million to date in what would’ve been the cost for natural gas and electricity.
In 2009, the BCUA developed an Energy Master Plan to examine energy savings throughout the facility. The centerpiece of the Energy Master Plan was the CHP plant.
The BCUA CHP facility was deemed a great success and won awards from the NJDEP, Association of Environmental Authorities (AEA) and Board of Public Utilities (BPU). However, there is always room to improve.

22. CHP Cogeneration Facility
Earlier in 2013 after an 18-year run, the BCUA decided to decommission the gas-fired blower engines. The BCUA currently has three electric engines powering the blowers.
The BCUA decided to add a third engine for the CHP unit and located it in the vacated area of the gas-fired blower engines. The engine will be the same 1.4 MW size and will most likely be a GE Jenbacher engine or an engine equivalent in nature.

23. Additions to the CHP Facility
Two reasons the BCUA decided to add a third engine:
Two engines can constantly operate while one can be serviced.
The BCUA is setting up a receiving station for fats, oils and grease (FOG) to inject into the anaerobic digester and burn biogas. The BCUA has also planned to receive food wastes, such as whey, to inject into the anaerobic digester to generate additional biogas.

24. Additions to the CHP Facility
Even though there are cost savings due to the CHP facility and tipping fees for FOG and food wastes, the BCUA still needed additional funding to install the third CHP engine.
In 2013, the BCUA applied for a grant through the New Jersey BPU’s Renewable Energy Incentive Program (REIP).

25. Additions to the CHP Facility
On October 25, 2013, the BCUA was awarded a $2.5 million grant to help fund the installation of the third CHP engine.
With the engine located in the blower building, the third engine will already have natural gas and biogas lines to be connected easily to this engine. The gas pretreatment system used for the blower engines will be used for the third engine.
Expected completion and operation commencement is late April 2015.

26. Black Start Capabilities
Currently, the BCUA has three kerosene- fired back-up turbines to operate the plant in case of a power outage.
The engines have the capability of operating the wastewater treatment areas and sludge processing while the CHP unit is turned off.
The CHP engines can operate during extended power outages if kerosene is depleted and cannot be delivered.

27. Conclusion
The BCUA can operate with limited outside fuel sources with an CHP system and energy savings based on the tasks provided in their Energy Master Plan.
The BCUA will continue to find ways to reduce costs and conserve energy to operate the facility and survive emergency situations.

28. Contact Information
Dominic L. DiSalvo, PE, BCEE
ARCADIS U.S., Inc.
(914)
Richard M. Cestone, PE, CHMM
Remington & Vernick Engineers
(856)

29. Questions?
BCUA Info