City of Boise Reaps Savings Offsetting Phosphorus Pollution at Idaho’s Dixie Drain Facility

Host Jeff Berckes speaks with water professionals from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality and the City of Boise about their creative approach to the Lower Boise River Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for nutrients. The City of Boise found an atypical way to meet pollutant reductions identified in the TMDL 40 miles downstream from the wastewater treatment facilities. The location of the Dixie Drain Phosphorus Removal Facility provides a unique opportunity to offset phosphorus inputs to the river system from multiple sources. Instead of more expensive treatment at the wastewater plants, the downstream facility maximizes phosphorus removal from sources along the river’s corridor.  

About our guests: 

Troy Smith is the Wastewater Compliance Bureau chief at the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality. 

Lauri Monnot serves as the Idaho Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Program (IPDES) municipal permit writer with the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality. 

Haley Falconer is the senior manager of Water Renewal Programs with the City of Boise, Idaho. 

Kate Harris is the Water Quality Programs manager for the City of Boise, Idaho.