A New Orleans wastewater partnership with Veolia Water was recognized by the United States Conference of Mayors with an award for excellence. "This award highlights the importance of public/private partnerships within government," said mayor Mitch Landrieu. "This partnership has continuously saved taxpayers money, and delivered high environmental compliance."

New Orleans sits below sea level in an area where hurricanes are a major problem and with average rainfall exceeding 60 inches per year. This makes operation and management of the city’s wastewater facilities very important. The partnership between Veolia Water and the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board (S&WB) began in 1992, when the board entrusted Veolia to operate its two wastewater treatment plants.

With a combined treatment capacity of 132 mgd, the project remains one of the largest in North America. The Conference of Mayors, the official non-partisan organization representing U.S. cities, acknowledged the partnership’s achievements, including:

  • Maintaining consistent environmental compliance. Veolia and the city have earned multiple awards, including the 2010 Gold Award from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies.
  • Leveraging environmental expertise on a new environmental project with Tulane University that will restore degraded urban wetlands into a lavish cypress forest.
  • Generating $26 million in overall savings through to strategic planning and innovative solutions.
  • Environmental operations during Hurricane Katrina. Veolia Water and the city quickly brought sewerage treatment back online, meeting a tight EPA and protecting public health.

“When people think of New Orleans, they think of its unique culture,” said Laurent Auguste, president and CEO of Veolia Water Americas. “But environmentally, it’s unique too. As a company of global environmental specialists, working in close partnership with New Orleans has been a tremendous honor.” The awards were presented Jan. 20 in Washington, D.C., at the Conference of Mayors 80th Winter Meeting.