NEWS RELEASE: New Dewatering Facility Opens at San José – Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT
Carlos Velazquez, Public Information Manager, Environmental Services Department
408-535-8168; [email protected]

New Dewatering Facility Opens at San José - Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility
$177M facility modernizes biosolids processing, reduces odors and the wastewater facility's footprint

SAN JOSE, Calif. (October 15, 2026) - The City of San José and partners today celebrated the opening of a new Dewatering Facility at the San José - Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility (RWF), positioning the RWF as a state-of-the-art biosolids treatment facility and improving the operational efficiency and sustainability of one of the largest wastewater facilities in the western United States.

The new facility replaces a decades-old process that relied on open-air lagoons and drying beds to remove water from biosolids - a process that could take approximately four years and was dependent on weather conditions. The new mechanical dewatering process removes excess water quickly, allowing for biosolids to be dewatered and transported off-site in less than a day for use as a soil amendment, compost, or fertilizer.

"This new Dewatering Facility is another example of the RWF and City's investment in effective and sustainable utility systems that meet future needs," said City Manager Jennifer Maguire. "This investment will support the level of excellence staff has achieved in managing the RWF, which was recognized recently by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies for five years of perfect compliance with federal and state environmental protection laws and regulations."

Biosolids are nutrient-rich soil-like material derived from the wastewater treatment process, and can be used by farmers, ranchers, and land managers to boost crop yields, improve soil quality, reduce the need for water, eliminate the need for synthetic fertilizers, and help fight climate change. With the new dewatering mechanical dewatering process, the City estimates that more than 100,000 tons of biosolids will be produced and transported each year.

The new facility, a $177 million total project investment, will also reduce odors via a control system that continuously captures and treats gaseous compounds from the dewatering process and will reduce the footprint of the dewatering process from more than 500 acres of lagoons and drying beds to the facility's new 10-acre site.

"In the Capital of Silicon Valley, even our sludge is getting a technological upgrade. We're turning a four-year dewatering process into less than a day, cutting odors, saving hundreds of acres, and putting waste to good use. That's faster, greener, less smelly government at work," said Mayor Matt Mahan.

The RWF treats an average of 110 million gallons per day, serving approximately 1.5 million residents and more than 17,000 commercial and industrial customers across eight South Bay cities. Jointly owned by the cities of San José and Santa Clara, the City of San José's Environmental Services Department (ESD) serves as the administering agency of the Facility located in Alviso. ESD manages the day-to-day operations, maintenance, regulatory compliance, and the Capital Improvement Program (CIP), which seeks to rebuild infrastructure worn from 70 years of non-stop service. Over the past decade, the CIP has invested approximately $1.2 billion in improvements and completed 31 projects.

More than 75 people attended today's ribbon-cutting ceremony, which included remarks from Mayor Matt Mahan, Councilmember David Cohen and San José - Santa Clara Treatment Plant Advisory Committee Chair and Santa Clara City Councilmember Karen Hardy.

The Dewatering Facility project team included Brown and Caldwell (Owner Advisor); Walsh Construction (Design Builder), Black and Veatch (Design Engineer), and Stantec (Program Management).

About the City of San José
With almost 1 million residents, San José is one of the most diverse large cities in the United States and is Northern California's largest city and the 13th largest city in the nation. San José's transformation into a global innovation center has resulted in one of the largest concentrations of technology companies and expertise in the world.

About the Environmental Services Department
The San José Environmental Services Department's (ESD) mission is to deliver world-class utility services and programs to improve our health, environment and economy. ESD manages garbage and recycling services; watershed protection and pollution prevention; municipal drinking water and recycled water; sustainability initiatives; and the operation and infrastructure improvements of the San José-Santa Clara Regional Wastewater Facility (RWF).

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