Neighbors concerned about SLC ‘biotower’ project

SALT LAKE CITY — Neighbors on Monday were petitioning to halt a sewage treatment "biotower" as they raised health and proximity concerns about the looming public utilities project on their street. Construction on the tower, planned for a parcel of land near 1030 W. Pierpont Avenue, is expected to begin on Jan. 12. “It’s going to be about 100 feet from our neighbors and a couple hundred feet from us,” said neighbor Alex Ward. “(It) seems a little too close for comfort.” According to Salt Lake City Public Utilities deputy director Jason Brown, there have been multiple complaints in the area about a bad odor, and that has been part of the motivation to move forward with the 30-foot-tall tower. “The odor is a rotten egg smell,” Brown said. “Hydrogen sulfide is the primary culprit.” Brown said the hydrogen sulfide is potentially toxic to workers underground and it can also lead to corrosion in pipes. He said the tower will be placed where it is because that is also where a major sewer line trunk sits underground. “All we are treating is the air and the gasses that are in the sewer trunk line, so we’re going to have a vacuum that is going to pull the air out,” Brown explained. “We pull that gas into a biotower that’s treated, and then what is discharged is gas — normal hydrogen, oxygen, water, carbon dioxide — through a biological process. That’s the ‘bio’ part of the tower." "There are seashells that are crushed up, and that acts as a media for bacteria to grow," Brown said. "And the bacteria eats specifically the hydrogen sulfide gas. So, it eats that and the byproducts are carbon dioxide and water vapors and things like that, so as that goes through this tower, it gets converted into nonharmful gases and they exit through the top of the tower.” Ward expressed concerns about health impacts on neighbors and also about the potential impact on home values from having a biotower nearby. “It’s going to scare away potential homebuyers, so that’s going to affect the values of our homes,” Ward said. Brown said while construction is slated to begin Jan. 12 to be completed by late July, workers were open to engaging with neighbors about concerns over the project.

Ward and his wife, Rachel, set up a petition through change.org in hopes of finding a better solution than the biotower on their street. They said as of Monday evening they had secured over 200 signatures and would be seeking more outside the Delta Center ahead of the Utah Jazz’ home game Tuesday night.

“We’re just trying to find anybody that can help us,” Ward said. “It’s just kind of disheartening.”

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