Utilities - Wastewater Division

Wastewater Division

Emergency WATER issues during regular business hours call: 352.742.6222
Emergency SEWER issues during regular business hours call: 352.742.6462
Emergency water/sewer issues evenings and weekends call: 352.742.6300

 (emergency service calls are routed through the Lake County Sheriff's  Office dispatch services during the evenings/weekends/holiday's)

Questions about your Utility Bill during regular business hours: 352.742.6400

July 9, 2019 - Public Notice:

Grant Funding Application for Project HMGP 4337-743 City of Tavares, Wastewater Lift Stations, Generator

The Wastewater Division operates one water reclamation facility and the old Caroline Facility, which has been converted into a .5MGD Master lift station.  The recently expanded, Woodlea Road Water Reclamation Facility is an extended aeration facility with pretreatment screening, aeration, clarification, filtration, chlorination and sludge treatment.  The facility presently has a capacity of 3.0 million gallons a day with the ability to upgrade to a 3.5mgd facility with some additional process control equipment.

We currently are treating approximately 1.5 million gallons day.  The treated wastewater is pumped to rapid infiltration basins for disposal, which are rotated on a weekly basis.  Laboratory testing of all waste (liquid and solid) generated is conducted on site to meet State and Federal Regulations.  Activities include, weekly, quarterly and yearly sampling of the treated water, groundwater, and treated waste sludge for compliance. 

The division currently maintains and operates 70 lift stations throughout the City.  Lift stations are regional pumping stations designed to pump wastewater from smaller areas to the wastewater treatment facilities. We have a plan in place to electronically monitor all of the lift stations to maintain oversight 24/7 days a week to preserve and protect the public health and environment. Modifications are ongoing at the facility to help maintain existing energy rates or chemical costs. We presently have 2 full time certified operators that hold double “A” licensure from the state of Florida and 1 part time class “C” to assist on weekend coverage. The
City is presently working on a plan to rehabilitate and increase the capacity of the wastewater collection system in the CRA District. This area has antiquated infrastructure over 50 years old with undersized piping inadequate for today's needs.  Infrastructure this old is a continuous and expensive maintenance issue. The City recently received a $15.5M loan with a $1.5M grant to complete this work from the USDA.

Laboratory

The City of Tavares Wastewater Utilities Laboratory is certified by the Florida Department of Health under NELAC (National Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Certification). Fields of accreditation include basic environmental and microbiological analysis for non-potable water and microbiological analysis for potable water. The Laboratory currently analyzes wastewater samples for FDEP plant compliance weekly, residuals for EPA and FDEP monitoring well compliance samples quarterly. Samples are also accepted for the purpose of troubleshooting plant and field operations with an average throughput of 4,200 analyses performed annually. Laboratory staff are CPO Certified and oversee chemical balancing of the City’s Splash Park, to assure compliance with the Department of Health regulations.