Reclaimed water situation improving, county says

The county’s Utilities Department said Friday that the reclaimed water system’s performance is improving.

The department said all reclaimed water customers should still limit usage to an absolute minimum. Plants and grass require less water at this time of the year, so watering once a week is sufficient.

Reclaimed water service was discontinued for residents west of 63rd Avenue East and 33rd Street East in west and northwest Bradenton on Nov. 19 because of equipment failure at the Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant. Since the problem began, county staff and independent engineers have worked to bring the plant back online.

The problem began when a mechanical failure resulted in the need to replace microorganisms that play an important role in properly bringing wastewater up to regulated standards. This process is called reseeding.

Recent storms have hampered the reseeding process. A reseeding on Sunday, Dec. 6, showed initial signs of success, but a full recovery to standard treatment levels can take up to 30 days. Any time during this seeding recovery process, the water quality parameters can return to normal. An exact date for the return of reclaimed water quality at the Southwest Plant is not available but could occur anywhere within 10 to 30 days.

The Utilities Department said it will issue further updates as conditions change.