City Receives Third Outstanding Wastewater Treatment Award

May 9, 2022

The City of Cape Coral’s Southwest Water Reclamation Facility earned First-Place for Outstanding Wastewater Treatment Facility Performance for the third year in a row.    

Cape Coral is the only City in Florida to receive the First-Place Earle B. Phelps Outstanding Wastewater Treatment Facility Performance award from the Florida Water Environment Association for three consecutive years.

Cape Coral’s Southwest Water Reclamation Facility (SWRF) processes 15 million gallons of wastewater each day using the A20 process. This process treats and filters waste by removing nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater.

In 2018, Matt Astorino became Chief Operator of the SWRF.  As such, he spent hours reviewing data and operational strategies.

His research led to operational changes that aided in reducing the average amount of nitrogen released from 15 milligrams per liter to 4 milligrams per liter. Decreasing the amount of nitrogen released enhances our ecosystem by reducing algae levels in Cape Coral canals.

The maintenance, electrical, and operational staff of the SWRF strive for efficiency, and because of this effort, they have reduced facility-wide chemical usage and energy demands.