Wastewater Aeration Control Case Study: Bird Island Treatment Plant  

Facility Overview

• 180 MGD wastewater treatment facility
• 32 aeration basins
• One of the largest wastewater treatment plants in New York State
• Largest ROOTS IntelliView® installation commissioned at the time of deployment
• Solution architecture now deployed at more than 300 wastewater treatment plants throughout the United States

Solution Highlights

• IntelliView® Controls deployment
• Upgraded RCS valve actuators
• DO-to-Flow control strategy
• Most-Open-Valve control logic
• Secure remote-access capabilities
• Advanced blower airflow and pressure management

Key Outcomes

• Improved dissolved oxygen control
• Reduced blower energy consumption
• Lower process variability
• More stable aeration performance
• Energy savings exceeding initial projections
• Accelerated return on investment through utility funding support

Bird Island's existing aeration control system had originally been installed as an efficiency upgrade. The system relied on dissolved oxygen measurements from only a limited number of basins, using averaged readings to control airflow across all 32 aeration zones.

As operating conditions changed, differences in tank loading, aeration requirements, and oxygen transfer rates made it difficult to distribute airflow effectively across the plant. These process variations prevented consistent aeration performance and limited the facility's ability to optimize energy use.

The plant also struggled to accurately regulate airflow because the existing valve actuators lacked the responsiveness needed for precise basin-level control. By 2008, the Buffalo Sewer Authority determined that a more advanced wastewater aeration control strategy was required to reduce blower energy consumption, which represented the facility's largest energy load.

At the heart of the Bird Island project is a flow-based aeration control strategy known as DO-to-Flow control. Rather than relying on averaged measurements across multiple basins, the system uses individual dissolved oxygen readings to calculate the airflow demand of each aeration basin independently. 

Those airflow requirements are then aggregated to determine total system demand and communicate operating adjustments directly to the blower control system. By combining basin-level oxygen monitoring with centralized aeration blower control, the system helps maintain stable treatment conditions while reducing unnecessary energy consumption. 

The upgraded wastewater aeration control system delivered a highly reliable, demand-based aeration solution that reduced energy costs while maintaining process stability. IntelliView® Controls improved aeration consistency and allowed Bird Island to operate at lower dissolved oxygen setpoints without compromising treatment effectiveness. Through improved airflow management and dissolved oxygen control, Bird Island achieved a practical approach to wastewater aeration optimization that delivered measurable energy savings and operational benefits.

The facility was able to operate at dissolved oxygen levels as low as 0.75 mg/L in the first pass of treatment while maintaining stable performance. This translated into additional energy reductions and improved control over process variability.

Following implementation, NYSERDA's post-project review confirmed that annual energy savings exceeded the original estimates. The resulting energy reductions helped justify the investment and provided the Buffalo Sewer Authority with funding support covering half of the project's overall cost.