Sewage system under way

SMITHFIELD - The lagoon sewage treatment system being installed at Friendship Park is part septic tank, part swimming pool and part lawn sprinkler.

Add it all together and the Friendship Park board says it will bring development to the park.

James Branagan, a member of the Friendship Park board, said the lagoon sewage treatment system is pretty basic, even though the price tag is about $435,000 - much lower than constructing a conventional sewage treatment plant.

The park board received $212,000 in a grant from the Ohio Public Works Commission and $61,000 from the Ohio Mid-Eastern Governments Association. The commissioners also donated $100,000 in county recreation funds. Branagan said the $100,000 from the county commissioners was used for the design.

The lagoon sewage treatment system sits on a hill above the lake. The park board still has to install about 5,500 feet of pipes and two lift stations to connect the peninsula at the lake and the campgrounds.

The system begins with the sewage being pumped into a buried tank that will separate the solids and liquids, much like a septic tank. The liquid gets pumped into a lagoon covered with thick plastic, where an aerator will allow naturally occurring biological growth to "work" on the liquid for a period of about two weeks.

The water then is pumped to a filtering system where organic solids will be filtered out. The water then is pumped back into the lagoon.

"The process gets a cleaner effluent," Branagan said.

The water then is put through a sand filter, where any remaining solids are filtered out. Branagan said the sand filter will help eliminate ammonia from the liquid, especially in colder weather.

The water then gets pumped into a tank which will add chlorine. Branagan said chlorine tablets, similar to what is added to a backyard swimming pool, are dropped into the tank. He said the chlorine will kill any type of virus and bacteria.

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Sewage system under way