T-L Photo/SHELLEY HANSON CHAD BUSKA, left, s maintenance operator at the East Ohio Regional Water Authority, talks with James Slevin, right, president of the Utility Workers Union of America, at the plant in Bellaire on Monday.

BELLAIRE — The East Ohio Regional Water Authority received a visit Monday from James Slevin, president of the Utility Workers Union of America.

Slevin, who is new to his position, said he wanted to see the facility, learn about its recent upgrades and visit with the plant’s union workers from Local 436A.

The authority recently finished a $5.3 million project that now allows the plant to generate its own electricity, using the waste it processes in Bellaire. About five years ago, EORWA executive director Valerie Moore received a call from Renato Contipelli, a developer with Quasar Energy Group of Independence, Ohio, who pitched the idea of retrofitting the plant to become an energy neutral facility. Moore contacted EORWA’s engineer, Jeff Vaughn, about the sales pitch, and he agreed a meeting should be held with Quasar. Later, EORWA’s board members approved moving forward with the project.

For Moore, Slevin’s visit was a welcomed one.

“For me, it’s showing how the union employees, the union and the management at EORWA worked together to see this plant come together,” she said.

Slevin said he was interested in the new technology at the plant, but he said his main concern is always the workers and their safety and security. He noted, however, that he was impressed with the plant’s management and Quasar to see into the future regarding coming environmental regulations.

“It was good that you looked in the future of it. Sometimes it’s hard to figure out what the regulators and policymakers are trying to come up with or where the next stop point is,” Slevin said.

Scott Antonik, collections operator at East Ohio Regional Water Authority and president of Utility Workers of America Local 436A, said he is impressed with the changes made at the plant.

“To make our own power is a big deal,” Antonik said.

Roger Stewart, president of the EORWA board of directors, said the upgrades have made the plant safer for workers as well.

“Employee welfare is one of our priorities,” Stewart said.

“Saving money for the people, the customers, is good, but we want to make sure our guys are taken care of, too.”

Slevin agreed.

“Besides being here they got people on the outside waiting for them to come home,” Slevin said of the workers.

The plant now sequesters about 1,700 tons of carbon dioxide annually. Existing digesters at the plant were retrofitted to be able to allow the plant to capture the resulting methane gas, which is then converted into electricity via a microturbine on site.

Some organic material is added to aid the creation of additional gas. The electricity is used to power the plant. Extra electricity that not used is put back into the electrical grid system.

The plant now also creates Class A biosolids, which can be used to fertilize farm land growing food for humans. Previously the plant could only produce Class B biosolids, which can only be used on farm land used to feed animals.