FRACKVILLE - The Frackville Area Municipal Authority has applied for a $150,000 state grant to replace an important part of its sewage treatment plant.
The authority plans to replace the bar screen at the plant mainly due to its age. The bar screen is original equipment at the more than 20-year-old plant. The application was submitted by Entech Engineering project manager Donald Cuff to the state Department of Environmental Protection.
"According to an email from Don, he didn't expect to hear from DEP on the grant application until after their July 8 meeting," FAMA office manager Rhonda Frantz said Thursday. "We would have to do a 15 percent match. We were contacted by DEP for additional information on the application, so that looks promising. A lot of different places applied and they've been turned down, so if we were contacted, we have a chance."
Cuff said by telephone that the new bar screen will be easier to operate by employees. He said the unit screens out the big pieces of the sewage.
"It's a mechanically cleaned bar screen that we're looking to use the grant funds to replace the original one to the plant," Cuff said. "The new unit will be quite similar, although we're intending to install it in such a way that it would be less labor intensive as far as the plant personnel, because the more we can have the machine do, they're more available to do other things within the plant."
Cuff said the employees have been able to do repairs to keep the bar screen functional. He said the bar screen operates 24/7 and it has reached the end of its useful life.
If approved for the grant, the funds will go for the cost of a new bar screen. Another part, the grit collector, also needs to be replaced, but funding would need to come elsewhere.
"The grit collector was not included in the application at this time, but it will probably be something that they'll pursue in the future," Cuff said.
In other business, Frantz said information requested by Mahanoy Township to determine the feasibility of connecting the township villages of Morea and New Boston to the FAMA system has been forwarded.
"Everything that the Mahanoy Township engineer needed was sent to him," Frantz said. "We're waiting to hear from them, though Don said the township engineers have some work to do before we hear anymore from them."
The FAMA board also approved the purchase of a new commercial-grade riding mower.
"The one we had is approximately 10 years old, and it is a residential riding lawn mower," Frantz said. "It's been in and out for repairs many times, and the last time it was repaired we were told it may not last."
Frantz said the Exmark riding mower was purchased from Kramer's Power Equipment in Schuylkill Haven for $7,000 through the state's COSTARS program. The COSTARS program is administered by the state Department of General Services. The COSTARS approach to cooperative purchasing uses the purchasing power of local entities to obtain more competitive pricing and choice than individual purchasers might be able to obtain on their own. It eliminates the need to solicit bids, which also saves money for government entities.
Lien letters and water shutoff notices were mailed to delinquent accounts and the properties were posted. Frantz said 50 water shutoff notice letters were mailed and 27 properties were posted.