By Paul Schmidtbauer and Tim Potter, P3S Awards Committee

Since 1971, the P3S Committee has been recognizing the achievements of high performing companies in the area of wastewater and stormwater excellence with annual awards. Separate awards are given for Southern California and Northern California and in the large and small facility categories.

Award nominations are submitted by local authorities such as the local POTW source control inspector. Nominees are evaluated by the P3S awards subcommittee including an on-site inspection. To nominate an outstanding company in your region, please email pschmidtbauer@socwa.com.

Also during the awards banquet Preeti Ghuman, an engineer with LACSD, was presented with her P3S silver manhole.

Northern California

Large Facility

Winner – California Dairies, Inc.

Notable pre-treatment and stormwater efforts:

• Large milk processing facility
  - Evaporated milk in bulk containers
  - Butter in retail and wholesale containers
• Large volumes of wastewater to manage
• Stormwater exposure in tank farms and unloading
• Established on-site storage tanks for high and low pH liquids
  - Flow stabilization controls pH and BOD variability
  - Use controller to mix high and low pH solutions with wastewater
  - Over 75% reduction in acids/caustics for pH adjustment
• Reuse category 1 cow milk for clean in place make-up water and other in-plant uses
  - More than 60% of incoming volume of milk
• Use heated liquids and air to preheat incoming air and milk in processes
• Use cooled liquids from process in cooling towers
• Stormwater protection
  - Tank containment and loading area drains through monitored wastewater discharge
  - All other outside drains to on-site catch basin for evaporation/percolation

Website: www.californiadairies.com

Certificate of Merit: California Natural Products

Small or Medium Facility

Winner - Italix Company

• Metal Finisher in Santa Clara
• Specializing in small parts:
  - Inputs to production with varied specifications
  - Ornamental
• Strong compliance record
• Achieved zero wastewater discharge
• Accomplished without compliance drivers
• Phased approach
  - Wastewater reductions: spray rinses; cascading rinse tanks
  - Improved on-site treatment expanding reuse options: at rinse tanks and end of pipe
• Evaporator for last volumes generated
• Limited budget
• Varying product specifications
• Achieved zero discharge without impacting product quality and maintaining production levels

Website: www.italix.com

Southern California

Large Facility

Winner – Huntsman Advanced Materials, Los Angeles Facility

Nature of Business – A global leader in the development and supply of high performance adhesives. These adhesives cover a broad range of applications and offers production and performance benefits to industrial, consumer and construction markets.

Innovative solutions and/or technical advances to waste management problems:

• Zero discharger of process wastewater.
• Stormwater BMPs
  - Mechanical sweeping
  - Indoor Storage
• Engineering controls
  - Catch basins
  - Filters
  - Treatment of oils, suspended solids and trash debris.

Use methodology known as:

• Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDAC)
• PLAN: establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results with customer requirements and Huntsman’s policies.
• DO: Implement the processes.
• CHECK: Monitor and measure processes and product against policies, objectives and requirements and report the results
• ACT: Take actions to continually improve process performance.

Website: www.huntsman.com

Certificate of Merit: LADWP Valley Generating Station

There were no nominations in the Southern California small business category.

Again be sure to submit your nominations for deserving companies for the 2011 P3S Conference in San Jose, for details email pschmidtbauer@socwa.com.