In the first full year of operation, Allen Harim’s upgraded Harbeson processing plant has achieved 100 percent compliance with discharge standards.
Allen Harim spent more than $8 million on Phase 1 of the treatment plant upgrade which was finished in late 2016. The new technology has been working so well that some of the parameters the company is required to test for produce results are below their respective detection limits.
The company is required to submit a monthly Discharge Monitoring Report to the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control detailing all testing results.
“This is proof that our investment has been worth it and I’m so proud of our team for their hard work in ensuring a perfect record,” said Joe Moran, CEO of Allen Harim. “Our next step of removing our treated effluent from Beaver Dam Creek and piping it to Artesian for land application will be an even better environmental outcome.”
The Phase 2 part of the project involves a partnership with Artesian Wastewater Management, Inc. Construction permits were issued by DNREC last fall, and Artesian is building a pipeline from Allen Harim to their Northern Sussex Water Recycling Facility north of Milton.
Artesian will use the water for spray irrigation on agriculture land where crops need nutrients. Using recycled water to irrigate crops helps saves on groundwater, and saves farmers from having to buy chemical fertilizers to add nutrients to the soil.
Headquartered in Seaford, Allen Harim operates a chicken processing facility in Harbeson; a breeding operation in Liberty, NC; a hatchery in Dagsboro, and a hatchery and feed mill in Seaford.
The company employs more than 1,750 people in the United States. It also has more than 230 independent growers and 20 company farms across Delmarva.
