Construction Begins on Conroe’s New Wastewater Treatment Plant

By Jay Srinivasan

(Montgomery County, Texas – Dec. 02, 2019) Construction has begun on Conroe’s new Central Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Spurred by energy and manufacturing companies and a thriving housing market, Conroe has experienced significant population growth over the last two decades. According to “24/7 Tempo,” Conroe has grown from nearly 37,000 people in 2000 to more than 77,000 in 2018 and is currently the fastest growing city in the United States.

In addition, average wastewater flows at Conroe’s existing Southwest Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant is nearing an important capacity benchmark established by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). To meet future growth and TCEQ mandates, the City of Conroe decided to build the Conroe Central Wastewater Treatment Plant.

“We are continuing to be good stewards for our community,” said Norman McGuire, director of public works at City of Conroe. “The fact that the city is growing rapidly is wonderful. But with that growth, we need to improve our infrastructure in an efficient, cost-effective manner. The wastewater treatment plant is an important component of that improvement.”

The new plant, which is being constructed on 25-acres of a 50-acre greenfield site east of I-45 north of South Loop 336, will have a 6 million gallons a day (MGD) capacity with the ability to be expanded to 12 MGD. Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam, Inc. (LAN), a national planning, engineering and program management firm, is the project’s design engineer, while LEM Construction Co, Inc. is the contractor.

“The new treatment plant will increase the city’s treatment capacity by 50 percent and is Conroe’s largest public works project to-date,” said Melissa Mack, P.E., LAN’s senior associate and principal. “It will also reduce the city’s operating costs over the lifespan of the facility.”

The construction of the $60 million treatment plant is scheduled to be completed in Spring 2022.