Whitefish, MT hires consultants for water treatment expansion

In an effort to improve its wastewater-treatment capabilities, officials from Whitefish, Montana have turned to Morrison-Maierle. The engineering firm will design plans to increase the Whitefish wastewater treatment plant’s treatment capacity.

Morrison-Maierle beat out engineering consulting firm Advanced Engineering and Environment Services to win the contract, which was unanimously approved by the Whitefish City Council. The project’s estimated cost is $10-12 million and follows the Montana Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) recent prohibition of water extensions or connections within the city. Whitefish is nearing the threshold for water storage and capacity, according to the DEQ.

The city currently treats 4 million gallons of water each day, but the DEQ only credits 3 million – the amount possible when one of the wastewater treatment plant’s filters is out of service. To continue adding new users to its water network, Whitefish must prove it has a plan in place to increase its capacity. Another step the city will take is repairing leaky water mains, which account for a great deal of wasted water. It has also approved a citywide water conservation ordinance, and will take several other steps, including the expansion of an intake pump station and an extension of the city’s sanitary sewer.

“While this may only be a concern for a few days a year during peak demand season, the time has come to hire a consultant to assist staff with the increase of our water treatment capacity,” Craig Workman, Whitefish’s public works director, said in an interview with the Whitefish Pilot. “We were extremely impressed with the research [Morrison-Maierle] completed to get themselves up to speed on the project, and in particular, the background and skillset of the lead designer.”

Founded in 1945, Morrison-Maierle has been operating in the US for more than 70 years. It currently has 12 offices in Montana, Wyoming, Washington, and Arizona, and serves most of the western United States. The firm is built upon four core values – integrity, commitment, respect, and excellence – which are leveraged in the creation of solutions for airports, buildings, development, natural resources, industrial, survey, and water-wastewater projects.

Related: Burns & McDonnell hires water treatment expert Karla Kinser