Romtec Utilities has a vast experience with providing pump stations for a variety of uses and supplies custom systems to meet our customer’s needs. The NIROP Pump Station project in Fridley, Minnesota is a project in which Romtec Utilities supplied a custom pump station for the clean-up of an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designated “Superfund” site. “Superfund” sites are contaminated locations that pose a threat to environmental and public health and require special attention for the cleanup of contaminants.

The NIROP site is also known as the Naval Industrial Reserve Ordinance Plant, a weapons manufacturing plant that was established in the 1940’s to keep up with the weapon demand of World War 2. As a result of former and improper waste disposal, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s), that were used in the degreasing of metal components, have made their way into the soil, groundwater, and even the nearby Mississippi River. The Unites States Navy is working with the EPA and other agencies to facilitate the clean-up as directed by the EPA. (“NIROP Fridley”, n.d.)

To assist with the collection and cleaning of contaminated groundwater, Romtec Utilities was contacted for the design and supply of a custom pump system. The supplied system is housed in a custom, double walled Xerxes fiberglass wet well with multiple custom penetrations to receive contaminated water from 14 areas of the contaminated site. The fiberglass wet well is perfectly suited to handle VOC contaminated wastewater and is resistant to degradation from chemicals.

The fiberglass wet well has an 8’ inner diameter with an 8’ depth, and two submersible, 7.5 horsepower Goulds pumps that pump the contaminated water into two discharge pipes to be “air stripped” of VOCs, including the trichloroethylene and other chlorinated solvents that have been found in the soil and water.

The Romtec Utilities pump station is just the newest addition to the clean-up efforts, which began in 1981. Since then, over 4.3 billion gallons of contaminated groundwater has been treated and 30,000 pounds of VOCs have been removed from the site. The Navy and the United States EPA are continuing work to clean up the former weapons manufacturing site to ensure that it will not pose a threat to human health.