The City of Sunrise's Southwest Wastewater Treatment Facility (SWWWTF) was investigating the
option for upgrading the plant to meet advanced wastewater treatment (AWT) levels advanced
technologies in order to treat wastewater to the level required for groundwater recharge through the use
of rapid infiltration basins or trenches. The objective of this pilot study was to determine if these AWT
technologies could be used to convert the City's SWWWTF to treat the raw wastewater to a level
required for groundwater recharge in Broward County. Chapter 27, Water Quality Standards of the Code
of Broward County, Florida, requires that any discharge to the groundwater must meet Total Phosphates
(PO4-P) concentration of less than 10 µg/L (parts per billion). This pilot study specifically evaluated the
multiple treatment trains combining BNR-MBR technology, reverse osmosis (RO), and chemical
phosphorus removal at pilot scale and performed cost analysis for commercial "scale-up" application of
treatment alternatives to full-scale wastewater reuse application. Pilot results indicated that the control
stream removed orthophosphate to the levels of 10 µg/L 15% of the time and 100 µg/L 75% of the time.
Stream A removed orthophosphate to less than 8 µg/L 100% of the time. Stream B effluent showed
orthophosphate levels of 10 µg/L 35% and 100 µg/L 96% of the time on single sample basis and levels
of 15 µg/L on an average basis. This data was then incorporated to develop an economic evaluation of a
full-scale treatment process, along with the regulatory requirements associated with the proposed
treatment processes. Includes 10 references, tables, figures.