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Dried "cake" from the plant is purified and converted into organic fertilizer for citrus groves.

After raw sewage is screened, cleaned, filtered and disinfected in a four-stage process at the 69th Street Plant, the resulting sludge” is sent next door to the massive processing disposal plant. From a control room above the plant’s super-hot furnaces, Arthur and his co-workers oversee the decontamination of up to 112 tons of sludge per day. First, the sludge is screened and degritted. From there, it is pumped into huge digesters for decontamination. Then, it is pumped into centrifuges, where chemicals are added to help separate water from solids. Finally, the dried “cake” is purified and dried in 1,200-degree furnaces. The purified “product “ is sent by conveyor belt to a private fertilizer company that sorts and packages it in bags for shipment to citrus groves and other agricultural customers.

 

 

Profile: Arthur Proctor

As Houston’s population grows, so does its appetite for water and its need for state-of-the-art sewage treatment. Houston uses 146 billion gallons of water a year. And it generates about 240 million gallons of sewage a day — enough to fill the Houston Astrodome twice.

Arthur Proctor is a Senior Sludge Processor at the 69th Street Sludge Disposal Plant, where he helps oversee the decontamination of sludge from the City’s largest sewage treatment plant.

To the uninitiated, the smell and the heat of the plant are over-powering. But Arthur and his co-workers take it in stride. A fine dust hangs in the air, but few of the workers wear protection.

While the work environment is hot and smelly and the pay is low — Arthur makes just over $15 per hour after working at the plant more than 12 years — the workers at 69th Street are committed to their work and proud of their accomplishments. Their plant and Houston’s 40 other treatment plants help keep Houston’s streams and rivers clean.