Filtering out excess energy use at the Erie County DSM

The Erie County Division of Sewerage Management (DSM) has always valued efficiency. Established in the 1960s, the DSM’s mission is to provide cost-effective, customer-oriented wastewater service that protects public health and enhances the natural environment. This is accomplished through the operation and maintenance of six wastewater treatment facilities, just under 100 pumping stations, five overflow retention facilities, and over 1,000 miles of gravity sewer pipe and force mains. 

The largest of the DSM’s wastewater treatment plants is the Southtown’s Advanced Wastewater Treatment Facility. Electricity accounts for 9% of total expenditures at the Southtown treatment plant, and is similarly high at the DSM’s other wastewater facilities.

So, in 2018, when the DSM was invited to join NYSERDA’s Strategic Energy Management (SEM) program, they saw it as a natural fit with their mission.