Water Environment Services

Water Environment Services

WES Projects

Capital Improvement Program

Capital Improvement Plan cover The Capital Improvement Group plans, designs and builds major capital facilities in the areas WES serves, so that operating divisions can serve our customers' wastewater and surface water needs. Capital project management includes design and construction and provides project controls in terms of cost, schedule, scope, program development and long range forecasting.

The Fiscal Year 2024 – 2029 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) was developed to support WES in meeting the needs identified in our planning documents. The CIP puts forward a prioritized plan to maintain existing facilities, allow efficient, cost-effective operations and provide new infrastructure to protect human health and clean water, today.

Sanitary Sewer System Master Plan

Capital Improvement Plan cover The purpose of this Sanitary Sewer System Master Plan is to identify immediate needs in the sanitary sewer system and develop a corresponding set of capital improvement opportunities that WES can implement through the year 2040. The Master Plan was developed to provide a least-cost combination of conveyance and treatment improvements that provide maximum value across the system.

Sanitary Sewer Projects

The Clackamas Interceptor (An interceptor is a gravity sewer that transmits large volumes of wastewater to a wastewater treatment facility) lacks capacity to serve current and future ratepayers and needs rehabilitation in some areas. Design is underway. Construction will be phased over the next decade in three or four phases.

Fischer's Forest Park is a septic system serving 26 residential customers near Redland. The system was built in 1970, and the system requires renovation including; rehabilitating the collection system, conveyance lines, manholes and pump station entry points, and replacing gravity conveyance lines and septic tanks. The project will also address deficiencies in the existing drain fields and update the effluent distribution system.

Work to upgrade the Kellogg Creek Facility is continuing with construction on three projects:  

  • Influent Pump Station Pumps
  • Secondary Clarifier Mechanisms and Weirs – Recoats concrete and equipment and replaces drives.  
  • Aeration Basin Improvements – Replaces aging instrumentation and valves to improve blower control saving energy and improving process performance.

Several pump stations need rehabilitation and a variety of upgrades to improve reliability including safety, structural, mechanical, electrical and control system improvements.

Inflow and Infiltration (I/I) is groundwater and/or rainwater that enters the sewer system through direct connections such as roof drains or area drains or defects such as leaking joints or manholes. When the amount of I/I becomes excessive, it is more cost effective to remove the I/I than upsize infrastructure or treatment facilities. To help achieve this reduction, WES has Intergovernmental Agreements with five partner cities.  With the IGAs, WES will provide 33% funding for approved I/I reduction projects.

The Rock Creek Interceptor Extension Project was identified as a priority to ensure a safe, resilient, reliable sanitary sewer system with the capacity to serve our community now and in the future. This project will provide additional capacity and system improvements to serve Clackamas County and portions of the Happy Valley, Pleasant Valley, and the area around it.

The capacity of the existing Tri‐City outfall is approximately 75 MGD and is expected to be exceeded as flows increase as projected. The capacity of the new outfall will be higher, provide improved mixing over the existing outfall and have sufficient capacity for decades to come.

The existing Willamette Pump Station and Force Main, which were constructed 1986, have served the West Linn community well. However, improvements and upsizing are needed for WES to continue to provide a resilient, reliable sanitary sewer system to serve our community now and in the future.

Past Projects

Surface Water Projects

WES owns the 3-Creeks Natural Area, where Mt. Scott, Phillips and Deer (Dean) Creeks come together on 89 acres in Northern Clackamas County. WES is working on the final plans to enhance floodplain processes and the existing natural floodplain area, construct wetlands and floodplain terraces to increase flood storage, improve fish and wildlife habitat, restore wetlands, and restore natural floodplain function.

The purpose of this project is to reduce flooding and improve habitat along Kellogg Creek between SE Clackamas Road and SE Thiessen Road by removing or replacing culverts and stream crossings and naturalizing a concrete channel. Replacement stream crossings will be designed to be fish passable.

WES constructed the Carli Creek regional water quality facility to remove pollutants in runoff from developed industrial lands in the Clackamas Industrial Area. The project redirected urban runoff through a newly constructed treatment wetland to reduce negative impacts of high storm flows and pollutants. Ongoing work may include irrigation, weed management, removing/managing sediment, managing water flow, vegetation monitoring and statistical analyses.

Detention Pond Repair/Rehab

Detention pond repair/rehab includes removing silt and overgrown vegetation from detention ponds to return the ponds to their original design. Since the original installation, many ponds have become overgrown with vegetation. The pond bottoms are filled with vegetation and silt making them ineffective for stormwater treatment.

Drainage System Modifications

 

WES is designing projects to help prevent Kellogg Creek and one of its tributaries from flooding roads and property near SE Clackamas and Thiessen roads.

Stormwater System Repairs and Upgrades

Projects include small drainage and retrofit projects that restore or enhance the functional capacity of the storm system. Projects may include work to improve drainage issues, installing small low-impact development facilities such as rain gardens as retrofits, and repairs to infrastructure such as previously installed restoration projects.

Sidebar Heading
Related Information
New Format?
On

Tri-City Influent Pump Station Expansion Project

Sewage from Oregon City, West Linn and Gladstone arrives to the Tri-City Water Resource Recovery Facility (WRRF) through a large pipe approximately 40 feet underground. In order to treat the incoming flow through the facility, the Influent Pump Station (IPS) pumps the flow up to ground level for subsequent flow through the treatment process. The IPS was originally constructed in 1985 and was sized to pump up to 50 million gallons per day. However, in recent years the pump station has been operating beyond its firm capacity during some winter wet weather events, meaning all five pumps and supporting equipment must be in service in order to pump flow that arrives to the plant during those storms. A major capital upgrade is needed to both expand the capacity of the facility and replace obsolete equipment.

Location

The Tri-City WRRF is a regional treatment plant located in Oregon City that serves customers in Gladstone, Happy Valley, Milwaukie, Oregon City, West Linn and unincorporated Clackamas County. Learn more about the Tri-City WRRF.

Project Planning

Illustration of new pump stationThe recently completed Willamette Facilities Plan charted the path forward for the Tri-City WRRF through the year 2040. As part of the recommended improvements, the immediate need to pump more flow and to accommodate growth was identified for the IPS. Given the urgency for additional capacity, a project was initiated to address the IPS ahead of the future Wet Weather Expansion outlined in the Willamette Facilities Plan.

In the Summer of 2022, a Request for Proposals was issued to recruit an engineering design team for the project. Design will occur in 2023 through 2024, with construction anticipated to follow. All construction activity will occur on the site of the Tri-City WRRF and no public disruptions are anticipated.

Sidebar Heading
Related Information
New Format?
On

Inflow and Infiltration Reduction Program (I/I)

I/I is rainwater or groundwater that gets into sewer lines through improper connections or damaged pipes and increases the amount of water that reaches our water resource recovery facilities, which we then have to treat. 

I/I also increases the risk of sewer overflows within the collection system.

Reducing I/I in key basins by 2040 would save approximately $120 million in required upgrades and expansion in the collection system and at our treatment facilities.

We’re teaming up with our partner cities that own and maintain their own sewer systems, which deliver wastewater to WES’ treatment facilities to reduce I/I and save our ratepayers money. WES has committed to fund 33% of these projects to help solve this regional issue. We’re pleased to report we have an I/I agreement in place with all of our service area cities.

The WES Technical Advisory Team (TAT) reviews proposals from member communities for program funding.

Projects approved

Member CommunityProject NameEstimated CostDate Approved by TATWES contribution
Oregon CityI/I Program Management$1,400,0003/31/2022$462,000
Oregon CityRivercrest Phase 3$2,900,0003/31/2022$957,000
GladstoneI/I Rehab Design$482,9113/31/2022$159,360
Oregon CityLinn Phase 1$2,900,0003/15/2023$957,000
Oregon CityLinn Phase 2$1,200,0003/15/2023$396,000

Crew inspecting pipes  
Inspecting the pipes

Closed circuit monitoring of pipe interior  
Close circuit TV cameras capture how easily unwanted water can seep into cracked pipes.

Interior view of a pipe  
Groundwater (infiltration) seeps into sewer pipes through holes, cracks, joint failures, and faulty connections.

Sidebar Heading
Related Information
New Format?
On

Kellogg Creek Water Resource Recovery Facility updates

The Kellogg Creek Water Resource Recovery Facility Facility (WRRF) serves the cities of Milwaukie, Johnson City, Happy Valley, and some areas of unincorporated Clackamas County. The existing Kellogg Creek WRRF has sufficient capacity to treat current and projected flows during most of the year. However, WRRF treatment capacity is capped at 25 million gallons per day (mgd). Because peak flows in the Kellogg Creek service area currently exceed 25 mgd during large storm events, excess flow is transferred to the Tri-City WRRF. This practice will continue and will become more frequent due to growth in the Kellogg Creek service area.

Because expansion of the Kellogg WRRF is not planned, current and future projects at the facility will primarily focus on rehabilitation of aging process units and improved treatment efficiency and reliability. There are currently three projects under construction at the facility:

Aeration Basin Improvements

The aeration basins are the heartbeat of the liquid treatment process at the facility, where air is supplied to the biological process to remove organic pollutants present in the wastewater. While the main aeration blowers were recently replaced as part of the 2017 Kellogg Creek Improvements Project, much of the air control valves, instrumentation, and control systems are aged and are being upgraded as part of this project. The project also addresses deteriorating concrete within the basin. The fully refreshed and modernized control logic will provide more energy efficient and reliable treatment. Construction of the improvements began in 2022 and completion is anticipated in the Fall 2023.

looking into the basin

Influent Pump No. 2 and 4 Replacement

Sewage arrives to the Kellogg Creek WRRF through a large pipe approximately 30 feet underground. In order to treat the incoming flow through the facility, the Influent Pump Station (IPS) pumps the flow up to ground level using four pumps. The two smaller dry weather pumps were recently replaced due to age as part of the 2017 Kellogg Creek Improvements Project. The two larger wet weather pumps are currently being replaced under this project. The new pumps have been delivered to the site and will be installed during Summer 2023.

new pumps being delivered

Secondary Clarifier Rehabilitation

The secondary clarifiers at the Kellogg Creek WRRF are designed to remove solids from the treatment stream prior to discharge to the Willamette River. The basins were last upgraded in 1994 and are due for rehabilitation. The first phase of this project was completed in 2021 and successfully re-leveled the effluent weirs and replaced corroded portions of the rotating steel mechanism. The second phase of the project, which began in 2022 and is scheduled to be completed in Fall 2023, is set to replace the central drives that rotate the mechanisms, recoat all exposed steel, and repair basin concrete.

Clarifier Rehabilitation

Sidebar Heading
Related Information
New Format?
Off