The Washington State Department of Ecology honored King County’s Carnation Treatment Plant with an “Outstanding Performance Award” for operational excellence that resulted in perfect compliance with all permit conditions in 2017.

The Carnation Plant is one of 111 wastewater treatment plants out of about 300 statewide that received the recognition. To earn the award, the plant had to operate around the clock for the entire year with no violations of any kind. In addition to meeting or exceeding effluent pollution removal requirements, the plant operations also flawlessly complied with monitoring and reporting obligations, pretreatment requirements, and spill prevention planning.

The plant was also the recipient of the National Association of Clean Water Agency’s “Platinum Peak Performance Award” for six consecutive years of perfect compliance with effluent discharge requirements under the federal Clean Water Act and the state’s Water Pollution Control Law.

The Carnation Treatment Plant has been in operation since 2008, serving about 2,000 people who live and work within the Carnation city limits. With its advanced technology and innovative design, the Carnation Treatment Plant also produces exceptionally high-quality recycled water that’s being used to enhance wetlands and preserve local habitat near the Chinook Bend Natural Area.

In addition to the recycled water it produces, the plant has been designed with numerous green features that minimize impacts on the environment, conserve resources and maximize energy efficiency.

Additional information about the Carnation Treatment Plant and its sustainable features is available online.