On Wednesday, during a deluge that blanketed New Orleans with five inches of water in two hours, the Sewerage and Water Board suffered another turbine failure and streets flooded.
Is there a fix for the system without breaking the bank?
UNO Professor of Engineering Norma Jean Mattei says yes.
“Getting out of the power generation business. Because [S&WB has] such an old plant, its life is beyond what it was intended.”
She says the current power plant is too old, too costly, too outdated, and needs to be retired.
Mattei cites the age of the equipment as a major reason: “Some of the problems of dealing with old turbines and old pieces of equipment is that it’s hard to get parts, you have to make the parts, and so it’s not as easy as ordering from Amazon and having it delivered.”
Turning over generation to a utility like Entergy would free up the Sewerage and Water Board to pay attention to more pressing matters like cleaning drainage canals and tunnels and improving the aging drainage infrastructure, according to Mattei.
One problem facing an incoming utility is type of electricity S&WB generates. It dates back to the early days of electric power and runs 51 of its 120 pumps on 25 Hertz, an older frequency of electricity.
The rest are operating on standardized 60 Hz power.
S&WB says they operate frequency changers to adequately meet energy cycles and phases.
To supply the power demands S&WB runs steam turbines primarily and diesel locomotive engines as backup power.
Mattei says the turbines and diesels have performed well, but “it’s time to not rely on such an old system. Because of its age, I don’t think that it’s a wise move for The City to continue putting money into repairing it.”
“Entergy is in the business of providing electricity,” She says. “If The City and Entergy get together and work out a time line to get the Sewerage and Water Board on Entergy’s power grid, it’s not simple, but it is doable.”