Wastewater Department

Wastewater Perspective

Water is essential for life. Living things cannot survive without it. 78% of the earth surface is covered by water, yet only 60% of 1% of this huge volume is safe to drink. Water is a precious commodity.

Water is used for many purposes in homes and businesses of the Village. Typical domestic uses include cooking, cleaning, laundry, showers, and sanitary facilities. Average domestic use in the Village of Plover is 60 to 70 gallons per day per person.

In addition to the domestic uses, businesses use water for cooling, processing and production, and cleanup. Commercial use can range from very little to tens of thousands of gallons per day.

As water is used for these purposes, it picks up foreign material. Organic matter, soaps and detergents, oil and grease, suspended solids, chemicals and etc, "pollute" the water making it unfit to be used again without cleaning. The water also becomes contaminated with bacteria that can cause illness. If this dirty water were discarded without cleaning it, it would cause outbreaks of disease and cause immense ecological harm to the environment.

Plover Wastewater Utility

The Plover Wastewater Utility is a unique set of facilities with the dual purposes of protecting human health and removing impurities from the water before it is returned to the environment. The used or waste water is collected from homes and businesses through a system of underground pipes and pumping stations. It is transported to the Wastewater Treatment Facility located on the west edge of the Village. Few people realize that the Village of Plover has had a recycling program for nearly forty years. The Village has been collecting and recycling the water it has used since 1973.

The clean water that is returned to the environment benefits our entire society, and meets current regulations. The Plover Wastewater Utility allows society to live in a densely populated area, and carry on residential, commercial, and industrial activities that continue a high standard of living with minimal risk to the public health and a minimal impact on the natural resources of our environment.