ET23SWE0039 - Wastewater Pump Measure Development

California eTRM (Electronic Technical Reference Manual) already offers a statewide deemed measure for clean water pumps, providing energy savings values and a path for payment of rebates for pump replacement and improving their efficiency. However, wastewater pumps do not currently have a statewide-deemed measure. Although the chemistry of the fluid is different, both clean water pumps and wastewater pumps have similar viscosity and experience the same efficiency-related challenges. 

Typically, these issues include degradation and deterioration of efficiency due to changing operating conditions, and in general, newer pumps have slightly better efficiency due to better manufacturing techniques. As such, although California currently has a statewide-deemed measure and available rebate for a pump replacement if it serves clean water (eTRM measure SWWP004), the same incentives are not available if the pump serves a sewer system. 

One of the reasons a deemed measure is not available for wastewater pumps is due to the higher variability of a typical pump’s operating hours; whether they are installed in a sewer collection system or in a wastewater treatment plant. The project team proposes a study to come up with the data needed to develop a deemed measure for wastewater pumps. The study will draw upon hundreds of pumps supported by California water treatment plant program-related projects for the wastewater treatment plant operating hours data, and leverage the existing clean water pump measure, SWWP004, for savings calculation methodology since the pumps in use are the same for clean water and wastewater applications.