WEBSTER, N.Y. — Why does the Village of Webster and the Town of Webster each have its own wastewater treatment facilities? Mike asked: “Why does Webster need two sewage treatment plants?” We went to the Phillips Road facility for answers.

The Village of Webster’s plant on Route 250 processes about 2.5 million gallons of wastewater a day. The Town of Webster’s plant on Phillips Road serves roughly 17,000 households and processes about 5 million gallons per day.

“Both plants needed upgrading,” said Rick Kenealy, chief plant operator at the Phillips Road facility. “So there was talk of a consolidation, there was a committee put together, a lot of fact-finding, a lot of back and forth, there was people from both sides, village and town, and at the end of it, the decision was that both plants were wanted, and maybe needed for the area.”

One factor that sets Webster apart from other towns is the upcoming 745,000 square foot Coca-Cola fairlife dairy facility, which is currently under construction.

“They’re projecting once all production lines are on-line, they’ve given us a projection of 2 million gallons a day,” Kenealy said.

Fairlife will eventually make up 30-40% of the Phillips Road facility’s flow. To accommodate this increase, the plant is undergoing an $81.5 million expansion. That includes new electrical equipment, a new aeration and digester system, and a new dryer station that will create fertilizer out of wastewater.

“We wanted to look at a new way of doing business in the wastewater industry and kind of creating a water resource recovery facility and looking to produce our own Class A fertilizer and return it back to the Earth,” Kenealy said.

The facility received a $20 million grant from New York State for the project. Currently, the Phillips Road facility processes 5 million gallons a day. When the expansion project is complete, it will be able to process more than 7 million gallons per day, including the anticipated flow from fairlife.

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