11.21.08
Friday Headlines: Town in Maine Looks to Repair Water Main Under I-95
Looking to repair a water main break under Interstate 95, the Board of Selectmen in Seabrook, Maine are considering replacing the main using directional drilling technology to pull a new pipe through a bore hole. The 12-inch, 350-foot water main remains shut off after it broke in two places in November 2007 and the cost of repair is estimated at $235,700.
Headlines
Town officials in Meyersdale, Pennsylvania are busily trying to figure out how to pay for $1.4 million in state mandated sewer work. The sewer work includes dredging sludge out of lagoons at the treatment plant, correcting combined sewer overflow problems and installing flow meters.
Customers of the Grand Rapids, Michigan water and sewer systems will face big rate increases next year, thanks to expansive upgrades and the defection of five suburbs from its sewer system. The average city resident will get a quarterly water and sewer bill of $168.10, an 8.2 percent jump over this year.
A broken water main in Chester, Vermont left some residents without water last night and forced the closure of a local high school for today.
For more than a week, the left lane of a key San Francisco artery has been closed by orange cones and sawhorses. The sinkhole, formed because of a broken sewer main, needs major repair. and patching the hole is in advisable because the hole might return and cause serious damage to a vehicle.
Sewer Rate News
Arkadelphia, Arkansas
Coldwater, Michigan
El Dorado, Arkansas
Sayre Borough, Pennsylvania
11.05.08
Wednesday Headlines: Ballot Initiatives for Water Infrastructure Pass in 3 States
Measures were on the ballot in three states yesterday to increase investments in water and wastewater infrastructure.
In the Keystone state, Pennsylvanians voted overwhelmingly to adopt the only statewide measure on the ballot yesterday, allowing state leaders to borrow $400 million for water and sewer improvements. An estimated 2,200 drinking water systems and 1,060 wastewater systems in the state must spend an estimated $20 billion to meet federal and state clean water standards.
In the third referendum question on Maine’s ballot Tuesday, voters authorized a $3.4 million bond issue for drinking water programs and construction of wastewater treatment facilities.
And in Arkansas, voters approved a measure that will allow up to $300 million in bonds to be issued for water projects around the state.
11.04.08
Tuesday Headlines: Voters to Decide Ballot Initiatives on Water Infrasture
It’s Election Day and there are issues on the ballot in a two states that will determine how much is invested in water infrastructure.
In Pennsylvania, voters will decide if the state should borrow $400 million to pay for water and sewer infrastructure upgrades. If passed the money would go to PENNVEST to distribute to communities for water infrastructure upgrades.
In Arkansas, voters will decide on Question Number 1, which if passed would allow the state’s Natural Resources Commission to buy up to $300 million in bonds to help local governments finance water and wastewater infrastructure projects.
Headlines
Hundreds of people in Centerville, Georgia had trouble getting ready for work and school this morning after a water main break.
A segment of Hennepin County Road 101 in Wayzata, Minnesota was closed yesterday so that work crews could repair a broken water main.
Borough council members in Ursina, Pennsylvania were visited by state officials Monday who urged progress on a $3 million sewer project. The council has decided to move forward with a grant application to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development which could pay as much as 75 percent of the bill for a system that includes a 36,000 gallon per day treatment plant.
The City and County of Honolulu’s Department of Environmental Services will be working on 12 major sewer projects in November that may impact roadways and traffic on Island of Oahu.
Sewer Rate News
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Highland, California
10.17.08
Friday Headlines: Sinkhole Swallows RV After Sewer Collapses
A large chunk of a street in Cleveland, Ohio collapsed, creating a sinkhole that swallowed the back end of a camper. A spokesperson from the Department of Water said a sewer collapsed, creating a hole that is 15 feet by 15 feet and seven feet deep. (picture courtesy of WEWS-TV)
Headlines
After years of waiting, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management has told the city of Wabash, Indiana what it needs to do with regards to its stormwater and sanitary sewers. Mayor Bob Vanlandingham was quick to point out that the work would involve millions of dollars and would almost certainly result in higher sewer bills in the near future to build up funds for the work to be done over the next 20 years.
In Oakland, California, an advisory issued Wednesday after sewage spilled into a harbor was lifted Thursday night when the water was deemed safe.
A water main break has closed a section of state Route 256 in Baltimore, Ohio.
Iowa City, Iowa likely will complete an emergency project to replace sewer lines damaged during the 2008 flood. If the lines are not replaced, they could release sewage directly into the Iowa River. Engineers estimate the project will cost more than $1 million but the city expects FEMA to reimburse 90% of the cost.
Sewer Rate News
Baytown, Texas
Jeffersonville, Kentucky
Russellville, Arkansas
York, Nebraska
10.01.08
Wednesday Headlines: In Arkansas, Election to Decide Water Bond Program
Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe said he expects voters to approve a $300 million bond issue for water projects in November, provided they understand it will not raise their taxes. The measure would extend a $300 billion bond program approved by voters 10 years ago, and would renew bonding authority for the state’s grant and loan program for water, sewer and waste disposal projects.
Headlines
A water main break today in downtown Norwich, Connecticut has closed Courthouse Square to all vehicular traffic. It is believed that it will take anywhere from four to eight hours to complete repairs. Also, the basements of two businesses sustained water damaged and were pumped out.
Crews in Lawrence, Kansas worked yesterday to fix an 8-inch water main that broke Tuesday morning. Repairs to the waterline were completed yesterday with patching of the road stretching into today.
An 8-inch water main also broke yesterday in Bernards Township, New Jersey leaving 250 residents on 18 streets without water. Residents have been told to boil their tap water for five minutes before drinking it.
After years of talk, the City Council in West Liberty, Iowa has finally agreed to move forward on the expansion of its wastewater treatment facility.
Sewer Rate News
Delta, Missouri
Waurika, Oklahoma
06.19.08
Thursday Headlines: Erie Canal Harbor Experiencing Sewer Overflows
The newly opened Erie Canal Harbor in Buffalo is experiencing sewer overflows despite a $53 million makeover. A disgusting mix of “floatables” has surfaced in the harbor’s centerpiece — the 184-year-old, rewatered Commercial Slip — following recent heavy rains.
Headlines
In Oregon, unless the Portland Water Bureau can circumvent new federal clean water rules, the city may have to spend millions of dollars on a new water treatment plant.
Companies both big and small are finding their niche in the growing water treatment industry.
A water main break in Elliot, Pennsylvania made local streets look more like a small river.
Nearly two miles of beach in Long Beach, California is closed until further notice because of a sewage spill in Glendale.
Sewer Rate News
Atlanta, Georgia
Knoxville, Tennessee
Rutland, Vermont
Trumann, Arkansas
06.12.08
Thursday Headlines: Sinkhole Shuts Down Street in Charlotte
In Charlotte, North Carolina, a sinkhole caused by a broken water pipe closed a major road while it is under repair (picture courtesy of WSOC-TV).
Headlines
One lane of traffic was shut this morning along Walnut Street in Murphysboro, Illinois so Public Works employees could replace a broken valve.
A water main break in Silver Spring, Maryland shut down a college campus and left nearby residents without water Thursday morning.
Work begins next month in Benton, Arkansas on a new five-million gallons per day expansionof the city’s wastewater treatment plant.
Sewer Rate News
Alamo, Nevada
Canton, Massachusetts
Yonkers, New York
04.22.08
Tuesday Headlines: Georgia Invests in Water Infrastructure
Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue has announced the approval of three Georgia Fund commitments totaling almost $2.9 million, two Drinking Water State Revolving Fund commitments totaling $4.1 million and one Clean Water State Revolving Fund commitment totaling $20 million.
Headlines
Debris in an underground drain has caused a huge sinkhole in East Rochester, Pennsylvania. The city is now scrambling to come up with the money necessary to fund the repairs.
Crews spent more than eight hours early this morning working to repair a ruptured water line in El Paso, Texas.
Forbes magazine ranks Des Moines, Iowa number one on its list of U.S. cities with the cleanest drinking water.
Recent storms have caused more than $80,000 in damage to streets, culverts and facilities in Arkadelphia, Arkansas after three different areas had their drainage pipes fail.
03.17.08
Monday Headlines: Water Authority Notes Challenge of Aging Infrastructure
Headlines
The new Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Sewer and Water Authority says, “the biggest challenge for anybody in our business, in the Northeast, is the aging infrastructure.”
Jefferson County, Alabama is considering a plan to reissue $925 million worth of school-construction bonds to help pay sewer debt costs
Plans are progressing in Northwest Arkansas for a new wastewater treatment facility
Tourist attraction Branson, Missouri looks to expand its water and wastewater plants
