Our Watewater System

Riviera Utilities Wastewater System serves approximately 6,000 residential and commercial customers in the City of Foley. The wastewater is collected through a system consisting of over 100 miles of gravity mains, 40 lift stations and 30 miles of force mains. The wastewater is received and treated at the Wastewater Treatment Plant. The Wastewater Treatment Plant has a capacity of 2.0 MGD, with a permit modification for an additional 1.5 million gallons per day approved by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM). The wastewater treatment plant is an extended aeration oxidation ditch. The process includes primary screening, activated sludge treatment, settling, ultraviolet disinfection and reaeration. The effluent water is then discharged into Wolf Creek. Riviera Utilities' Wastewater Treatment Plant continues to meet Federal and State requirements for the permitted discharge.

How is wastewater collected?

Wastewater from household and industrial use is collected by a system of pipes under the building known as building waste lines. These waste lines come together outside of the building and connect to our collection system through a lateral, or service connection. Once the wastewater enters our collection system, it is conveyed by gravity sewer lines and/or pressure force mains to our wastewater treatment facility.

How is the wastewater treated?

The process referred to as activated sludge treats wastewater collected from within the City of Foley. This process is a biological process, which means the waste is treated by living organisms. Untreated wastewater contains many varying organisms. Some are potentially harmful to humans while others are very beneficial for the treatment process and are not harmful to humans. With the activated sludge process, the treatment plant operators operate the process so those beneficial organisms are utilized in the treatment process. The beneficial organisms present in the wastewater require the same things that humans require for survival. They require food, water, and oxygen. The food is present in the wastewater as organic waste. There is plenty of water available, and there are small amounts of oxygen. Operators at the treatment plant create the proper conditions for these natural processes. Under the proper conditions created, the waste is used as food by the organisms and converted to a more stable material that can be removed from the water and disposed of safely as a soil conditioner. The treated wastewater is then discharged after disinfection and reaeration to Wolf Creek.