Sustainable Muskegon Hosting WWTP Tour Tuesday
MUSKEGON – November 20, 2018 – West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum, Muskegon Area Sustainability Coalition and County of Muskegon will host a luncheon and tour of the Muskegon County Wastewater Management System on Tuesday, November 27 from 12 to 1:30 pm.
Featured speaker Steve Barnard, Safety and Technical Coordinator for the Muskegon County Wastewater Management System, will discuss the history of the treatment plant, current initiatives, and the services available through the system. Lunch will be provided prior to the tour. The plant uses a land treatment process encompassing 11,000 acres of aeration and settling basins, storage lagoons, and irrigated cropland; the Wastewater Management System is so massive it has been viewed by orbiting NASA astronauts.
The system produces energy using a hydroelectric plant, and the on-site county landfill pumps methane gas 6.5 miles to local industries for direct burning. It is also a designated “Energy Ready” site with ongoing efforts to site solar energy operations.
Recreational options are also available on the site, such as birdwatching and hiking. An 11,000 acre portion of the property has been set aside for the future data center development as the MI Tech Hub.
The event is the first Sustainable Muskegon Forum of the 2018-2019 season, a program series supported in part by the Environmental Endowment Fund of the Community Foundation of Muskegon County.
Cost to attend is $10 if paid online. Learn more and register at wmsbf.org.
Daniel Schoonmaker
Executive Director
West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum
616.308.4761 (cell)
616.422.7963 (Grand Rapids)
269.588.0222 (St. Joseph)