Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, testing at the STTC is intended for technologies that are substantially developed and only need independent certification of their performance and maintenance requirements to access markets in different parts of the country. To ensure the technology has reached this level of development, it must have either a pilot, conditional, or general use level designation from the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) through the Technology Assessment Protocol – Ecology (TAPE) program. Additional information on the TAPE program can be obtained from Ecology and the Washington Stormwater Center. You can also contact the STTC Manager, John Lenth, if you have specific questions on how these prerequisites might apply to your technology.

The primary limitations for testing a treatment technology at the STTC are its footprint and design flow rate. The STTC has three test bays ranging in size from 16 foot by 17 foot up to 24 foot by 27 foot. Discharge manholes occupy a 5 foot by 7 foot portion of each test bay. A treatment technology’s footprint must be compatible with the available area in a test bay. In addition, a technology must be tested at up to 125 percent of its design flow rate in accordance with the TAPE. The STTC can deliver flow to a technology at up to 80 gallons per minute (gpm) with pumps or 100 gpm with gravity. The design flow rate of a technology must be below these thresholds to be tested at the STTC. Please contact the STTC Manager, John Lenth, for more information.

The STTC was designed to allow collection of stormwater samples in accordance with Ecology’s nationally recognized TAPE program for evaluating and approving emerging stormwater treatment technologies for widespread use in Washington State. The TAPE program is administered by Ecology, with assistance from staff at the Washington Stormwater Center. The process involves collecting samples to characterize pollutant concentrations in stormwater prior to treatment by the technology and after treatment. The data obtained from these samples are subsequently used to quantify the pollutant removal effectiveness of the technology. A generic Quality Assurance Project Plan was developed to provide a more detailed description of the testing process at the STTC for the TAPE program. Please contact the STTC Manager, John Lenth, for more information.

Maintenance Requirements Testing (MRT) of a stormwater treatment technology will involve the delivery of stormwater to the technology at its maximum flow capacity during repeated storm events; the goal will be to “artificially age” the technology to determine its maintenance requirements on a relatively short timeframe. This process will continue until the system becomes too clogged with sediment to function as designed – the point of failure. The mass of sediment that entered the technology and caused this failure will be measured. Maintenance techniques, materials, and costs required to keep the technology effective up to the point of failure and then fully recharged will also be tracked. Using these data, the life-cycle costs to operate the technology will be estimated and reported. A protocol has been developed to describe the specific steps in the MRT. Please contact the STTC Manager, John Lenth, for more information.

There is a flat fee of TBD that is charged for use of the STTC to cover staff salaries and other ongoing operating costs. In addition to this flat fee, a separate fee is developed on a case-by-case basis for the actual testing at the facility to cover the following activities: test system installation; flow monitoring; water quality sample collection; data management, quality assurance review, and analysis; and reporting. The testing fee will generally range from TBD to TBD depending on the installation requirements of the test system, desired suite of monitoring parameters, and the anticipated duration of the testing.

TBD

If your technology has an appropriate use level designation from the TAPE program and meets the technical requirements for testing at the STTC, you will need to complete an application that describes your technology and the specific testing you would like performed. Your completed application should be send to the STTC Manager, John Lenth, for processing. Once your application is processed, it will be reviewed by the STTC Management team and Board of Directors and an appropriate timeframe for testing will be provided given available capacity at the STTC. Once accepted, an applicant will work with the STTC contractor to produce a QAPP specific to their technology. This QAPP will need to describe monitoring procedures to be used for both the TAPE program and MRT.