Columbia Weather Systems

Are noxious odors a problem at your local wastewater plant? A recent Wastewater Digest article* makes some important points about Odor Control: 🔽 1️⃣. It is a common problem: “At some point, every wastewater treatment plant or water resource recovery facility has been subject to comments, concerns or questions about wastewater odor.” 2️⃣. It is a growing concern: “While treatment plants generally are constructed away from residential areas, communities grow and change. Housing developments close in on the proximity to the treatment plants, which then results in more concerns and complaints about offensive odors.” 3️⃣. It can be a public safety issue: “… odor control can be useful for addressing public safety and the health of a wastewater collection system.” A key component noxious odor prevention and mitigation is weather monitoring. Parameters like temperature, wind speed and direction, as well as humidity and rainfall, all impact. Check out our white paper 5 Reasons Smart Water Uti...

Weather data can serve as an important component of a water utility’s mission to serve the public. Several of these functions can be impacted by weather conditions. Water utilities manage public resources that offer recreation and education opportunities such as reservoirs and wetlands. Water utilities take the lead in promoting optimal water usage and conservation. Additionally, weather data can be a component of public communication during extreme weather events which may impact water service. Recreation/Education Many water districts incorporate reservoirs which may also be used for public recreation. Reservoirs incorporate obviously large bodies of water and often hilly terrain which lend themselves to creating a unique microclimate compared to population centers. Chances are good that visitors are traveling there from a different microclimate. Weather data can be used for reservoir management and made available to the public to determine whether weather conditions are cond...