Three options typically exist for disposal of water removed from an excavation, including: 1) disposal to a sanitary or combined sewer, 2) disposal to a storm sewer, or 3) transportation by a pump-truck for off-site treatment or disposal. For most projects, disposal to a sewer (options 1 & 2) is the most cost-effective approach, and almost always requires a permit prior to discharge. These permits require that pumped water be treated to meet specific contaminant concentration limits prior to discharge. Typical treatment regimes will reduce such contaminants as suspended solids, petroleum compounds, dissolved solvents, and metals.

A proper and economical water treatment strategy must consider: the selection of treatment components, the spatial arrangement of the selected components, the application of labor; the process flow rates, the electrical demand requirements, the remote monitoring of the system, the need for winterizing, redundancy (fail-safe) features, the regulatory reporting requirements, and maintenance. In addition to providing and installing cost-effective treatment systems, ECC has extensive experience coordinating with regulatory agencies, procuring permits, collecting discharge samples, and providing union or non-union operators, as project needs dictate.