D011 Dobbin Plantersville WSC

Dobbin-Plantersville WSC, located in Montgomery TX, has a plant with a well that produces 300 gpm of well water with the help of a submersible pump and serves about 600 connections. The well water produced has an extremely high temperature and contains methane, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen sulfide. The presence of hydrogen sulfide led to odor issues as well. The drilling of the well was completed in the Catahoula formation back in 2015 and was put into service by early 2016. WETS performed a site visit back on October 31, 2016 as the well had been shut down due to the odd taste of water. The most significant finding of this site visit was that the well water was producing methane which was proven by burning a sample of this gas creating a pale blue flame. A pilot study was then conducted on April 10, 2017. The temperature of the water was stabilized at 112° F and the post treatment water temperature was lowered to about 96° F. A cooling tower procedure was mimicked which lowered the temperature significantly and aided in improving the taste and odor of the water. Based on the pilot study, WETS recommended the implementation of a cooling tower treatment system. Shortly after, a used 500 GPM cooling tower was installed at the site. The cooling tower is effective for methane and hydrogen sulfide treatment of the feed water and lowers the temperature to make it suitable for drinking purposes.