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In addition to differences in the methods of treating wastewater, the existing wastewater <br />treatment plants also differ in the capacity of the facilities. Expressed in terms of gallons of <br />wastewater per day, the capacity of a wastewater treatment plant is the number of gallons of <br />wastewater that the plant can treat and dispose of on an average daily basis. <br />BY -Product Disposal <br />The by-products of the treatment process are effluent, screenings and grit, as well as sludge and <br />septage. Effluent is liquid waste. At county operated wastewater treatment facilities, effluent is <br />usually disposed of through either discharge to a percolation pond, through wetlands, or by <br />reuse. Reuse is an effluent disposal method involving spray irrigation. <br />Screenings and grit are the accumulated coarse sewage solids retained by the screening process. <br />Screenings and grit are disposed of at the county landfill. <br />Sludge and septage are the biological organisms that accumulate in the plant. Prior to final <br />disposal, sludge is usually subjected to an additional biological treatment process to remove <br />pathogens. Sludge is then transported to the County's Residual Dewatering Facility (RDF), <br />where along with grease they are subject to a physical dewatering process which facilitates <br />disposal. A screw conveyor is used to transfer the dried cake to a truck for hauling to the landfill <br />for ultimate disposal. <br />PUBLIC SEWER SYSTEM <br />The five geographic areas comprising the county public sewer system are: the south regional <br />area, the west regional area, the central regional area, the north regional area, and the City of <br />Vero Beach service area. Within the county system, the south county regional plant is connected <br />to the west county regional plant; the north county regional plant is connected to the central <br />county regional plant; and there is a limited connection between the central regional plant and <br />west regional plant. Because the county's regional wastewater treatment plants are <br />interconnected, there is flexibility as to which plant or plants will need to be expanded to <br />accommodate future demand. <br />At the county's central plant, the county also treats the City of Fellsmere's sewage for a bulk <br />rate. Currently, the city's average daily sewer flow is about 71,000 gallons per day, with a <br />maximum flow of 100,000 gallons per day. <br />Besides its regional plants, Indian River County also operates the Blue Cypress Lake package <br />treatment facility. <br />In 2017, 28,167 (47.24%) of the 59,618 developed residential and commercial parcels within the <br />County's service area were connected to the County's regional sewer system. <br />Community Development Department Indian River County 9 <br />AttacMi� ent 4 <br />