Clean Water Advocacy - Newsroom - AMSA in the News
Federal Sewage Plan Opposed
Tallahassee Democrat 11/10/2003
Rain water seeping into collection pipes in recent years has flooded the city
of Cairo's sewage-treatment plant in Georgia. And that has contributed to sewage
spills that Leon County says threatens the Ochlockonee River.
Last week, the Bush administration released a draft policy that would allow
cities with leaky sewage-collection systems to release partially treated
wastewater after heavy rains.
Florida and Georgia officials say they discourage the practice, called
"blending," that the policy addresses. They said they want their cities to fix
crumbling collection systems rather than to allow sewage to bypass treatment.
"This just seems like it's going backwards," Mimi Drew, director of the
Department of Environmental Protection's Division of Water Resources, said of
the draft federal policy.
It would allow wastewater to bypass biological treatment, also called secondary
treatment, during heavy rain storms. The peak flows can damage sensitive
treatment systems and cause sewage backups or spills, the Environmental
Protection Agency said.
Sewage still would receive primary treatment for removal of solids and some
nutrients. But it would bypass the secondary treatment system and would be mixed
with the other treated wastewater before it's released.
The Natural Resources Defense Council last week criticized the draft policy,
saying it would allow harmful viruses and parasites in sewage to be released
into waterways. But the Association of Metropolitan Sewerage Agencies said the
policy would improve safety by preventing sewage spills after storms.
The city of Apalachicola built a new wastewater treatment plant in 1985, but it
had problems from the time it was built. Sewage spilled from the plant after
heavy rains because of cracks in the collection system.
The problem was virtually eliminated in recent years with the installation of a
new collection system, according to DEP. The state has provided the city with
more than $10 million in loans and grants since 1994 to replace its crumbling
collection system, upgrade the sewage treatment plant and install a spray field.
Leon County officials say 30 sewage spills were documented in Cairo between 1998
and 2002. The Georgia Environmental Protection Department says the city's faulty
collection system contributed to the spills.
City Manager David Smith last month said Cairo has replaced much of its
collection system in recent years. The city also has agreed with the state to
upgrade its sewage treatment plant by 2006. Cairo's sewage problems also include
an unsuitable site for its wastewater spray field, Smith said.
The state wants Georgia cities to fix their collection systems rather than
allowing sewage to bypass treatment, said Jeff Larson of the Georgia
Environmental Protection Department.
"Georgia does not agree with the use of blending for wastewater treatment," he
said. Larson said he couldn't comment on the draft EPA policy because he had not
seen it.
The draft policy shouldn't allow cities to avoid repairing or replacing their
faulty collection systems, said John Millett, an agency spokesman in Washington,
D. C. He said it is intended only to prevent harmful sewage spills at existing
plants.
"This is a draft policy that is intended to give some measure of flexibility to
treatment plants within a very limited set of circumstances," Millett said.
The EPA says the public is invited to comment on the policy until Jan. 9.
The policy also addresses systems that are designed to combine sewage and
stormwater runoff. Such systems are not allowed in Florida, Drew said.