By James Feichtner
Every household or business with plumbing creates some sort of waste, but most people don’t pay attention to what happens after it’s flushed away. Like any wastewater management utility company, the Clay Township Regional Waste District is paying very close attention, and this year marks its 40-year anniversary of service. To celebrate, the CTRWD will host an open house from 4 to 7:30 p.m. June 29.
Officially established in 1975, the CTRWD, 10701 N. College Ave. in Indianapolis, is in charge of maintaining its customers’ sewer systems, which involves the treatment and recycling of local wastewater. Since its inception, the organization has seen massive growth in its customer base and operations.
“We’ve grown to over 14,000 customers, which would be the west half of Carmel and part of Zionsville,” CTRWD Utilities Director Andrew Williams said. “We’ve put a lot of money into projects. I think in the last 10 years we’ve put at least $34 million into capital projects to keep upgrading both for new growth and for our existing customers.”
Even with its continued updates and growth, the plant still manages to maintain the second lowest utility rates in Hamilton County.
Aside from physical updates over the years, the CTRWD has focused a lot on its public outreach.
“One of the things we’ve worked on is really educating the public,” Williams said. “We have a pretty extensive outreach. It’s not really about treating the waste but keeping things out of it. It’s remarkable what people will flush down the toilet.”
In addition, the CTRWD interacts with local Boy Scout troops, schools and even has a wild life sanctuary on its plant Zionsville.
“We have about 20 acres out there,” Williams said. “Mowing all that grass is crazy, so we planted prairie grass and wild flowers and became a certified wildlife habitat.”
For more visit, www.ctrwd.org
