Secretary Opens New Water Treatment Plant – WMDT

Report on the Twin Cities Wastewater Treatment Plant and its Contribution to Sustainable Development Goals

Project Overview

• Project Name: Twin Cities Wastewater Treatment Plant
• Location: Secretary, Maryland
• Status: Completed and operational after a 25-year development period.
• Scope: The facility replaces an outdated lagoon system established in 1972, providing a significant infrastructure upgrade.
• Beneficiaries: The plant serves the wastewater treatment needs of two communities: Secretary and East New Market.

Alignment with Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation

The project is a direct implementation of the principles outlined in SDG 6, which aims to ensure the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

1. Improved Water Quality (Target 6.3): The plant enhances the treatment process, ensuring that effluent discharged into the local river system is clean. This action directly reduces pollution and improves the health of local water bodies.
2. Enhanced Sanitation Infrastructure: By replacing a system from 1972, the new plant provides modern and effective sanitation services, a core component of SDG 6.
3. Regulatory Compliance: The upgraded facility enables the communities to meet modern environmental requirements for wastewater management.

Contribution to Sustainable Communities and Ecosystems (SDGs 11 & 14)

• SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): The plant is a foundational piece of resilient infrastructure that increases the capacity for sustainable community management and growth in Secretary and East New Market.
• SDG 14 (Life Below Water): By ensuring cleaner effluent, the project mitigates a significant source of land-based pollution, contributing to the protection and health of the downstream aquatic ecosystem.

Future Outlook and Scalability (SDG 9)

The facility’s design incorporates principles of innovation and long-term infrastructure planning, aligning with SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure).

1. Increased Capacity: The plant provides the necessary capacity to meet the current demands of both towns.
2. Modular Design for Growth: The infrastructure is designed to be scalable. According to Mayor Susan Dukes, modules can be added in the future to accommodate state-directed growth, ensuring the plant remains a sustainable asset for long-term development.

Analysis of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

   The article on the new Twin Cities Wastewater Treatment Plant connects to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) focused on water, infrastructure, sustainable communities, and environmental protection.

   • SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
     This is the most direct SDG addressed. The core subject of the article is the construction and operation of a new wastewater treatment plant, which is fundamental to ensuring the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation.
   • SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
     The project involves building new, resilient infrastructure. The article describes the plant as a “major upgrade” and notes its modular design allows for future expansion, highlighting its role as a sustainable and quality infrastructure development.
   • SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
     The new plant supports the sustainability of the two communities it serves, Secretary and East New Market. By providing essential sanitation services and enabling future growth (“if the state wants to increase growth into that plant, we can add modules to it“), it makes these communities more inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.
   • SDG 14: Life Below Water
     The article explicitly states that the project “helps to clean up the tank river because all of our effluent is going out, is clean.” This directly addresses the goal of conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas, and marine resources by reducing land-based pollution that affects aquatic ecosystems.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

   Based on the details provided, several specific SDG targets can be identified:

   • Target 6.3: By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally.
     The article’s focus on replacing an old lagoon system from 1972 with a modern plant that produces “clean” effluent directly contributes to improving water quality and increasing the proportion of treated wastewater.
   • Target 9.1: Develop quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, including regional and transboundary infrastructure, to support economic development and human well-being, with a focus on affordable and equitable access for all.
     The new plant is a piece of quality, sustainable infrastructure serving a regional need (two towns). Its design for future expansion (“we can add modules to it“) demonstrates resilience and a long-term approach to supporting community well-being and development.
   • Target 11.6: By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management.
     The wastewater treatment plant is a critical component of municipal waste management. By upgrading from an old system to a modern one, the towns are reducing their adverse environmental impact on the local ecosystem, specifically the “tank river“.
   • Target 14.1: By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution.
     The project’s stated outcome of cleaning up the river by treating wastewater directly addresses the reduction of pollution from land-based activities, which is a primary source of pollution for larger bodies of water.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

   While the article does not provide specific quantitative data, it implies progress that can be measured by official SDG indicators:

   • Indicator 6.3.1: Proportion of domestic and industrial wastewater flows safely treated.
     The article implies a significant increase in this proportion by stating the new plant is a “major upgrade” from the old 1972 lagoon system and now “can meet the requirements.” The existence of the new, functioning plant is a qualitative measure of progress for this indicator.
   • Indicator 6.3.2: Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality.
     The statement that the project “helps to clean up the tank river” directly implies an improvement in the water quality of the receiving water body. Measuring the water quality of the Tank River before and after the plant’s operation would provide data for this indicator.
   • Indicator 11.6.1: Proportion of municipal solid waste collected and managed in controlled facilities out of total municipal waste generated, by cities.
     Wastewater is a component of municipal waste. The new plant represents a “controlled facility” for managing this waste stream for the towns of Secretary and East New Market, indicating an improvement in the management of municipal waste.

4. Create a table with three columns titled ‘SDGs, Targets and Indicators” to present the findings from analyzing the article. In this table, list the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), their corresponding targets, and the specific indicators identified in the article.

   SDGs	Targets	Indicators (Implied from Article)
   SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation	Target 6.3: Improve water quality by reducing pollution and increasing the proportion of treated wastewater.	Indicator 6.3.1: Proportion of domestic and industrial wastewater flows safely treated. Indicator 6.3.2: Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality (implied by “helps to clean up the tank river”).
   SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure	Target 9.1: Develop quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure.	The construction of a new, modern, and expandable wastewater treatment plant serves as a qualitative indicator of developing sustainable infrastructure.
   SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities	Target 11.6: Reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including through waste management.	Indicator 11.6.1: Proportion of municipal waste (wastewater) managed in controlled facilities.
   SDG 14: Life Below Water	Target 14.1: Prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution from land-based activities.	The implementation of an advanced wastewater treatment system to produce “clean” effluent is a direct action indicator for reducing land-based pollution into a river.

Source: wmdt.com