Water News Update » Massachusetts

Tuesday’s Water News: Gloucester (Mass.) Struggles with Sewer Overflow Caused by Nor’easter

bengann — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 20:20:02 +0000

Struggling with heavy rains, the sewer system in Gloucester, Massachusetts has been releasing untreated wastewater into the city’s harbor. The city’s wastewater treatment plant can process 3.3 million gallons of wastewater a day, but since Sunday it has been dealing with close to 15 million gallons per day.

Headlines
Lansing, Michigan’s first combined sewer overflow project of the new season got underway yesterday as the city looks to upgrade its sewer system.

A water main break in Fort Wayne, Indiana sent water gushing onto the street Tuesday morning, causing part of the road to cave-in and causing damage to an old 72-inch sewer main. The failed 6″ water main was over 100 years old.

Stimulus Spotlight
With a grant from the federal stimulus package the Gordon Sanitary District in Minnesota is conducting a feasibility study to connect 55 buildings to its sewer system.

Bates Township, Michigan is considering its first major water project in over 15 years, replacing and upgrading the oldest lines in its system, and hopes to finance most of it with a $900,000 grant from the economic stimulus.

Sewer Rate News
Bellingham, Washington
Norwalk, Connecticut
Owosso, Michigan

Friday’s Water News: Parker City, Ind. Receives A Grant to Study Water Infrastructure Needs

bradhannon — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:44:49 +0000

The Town of Parker City, Indiana received a $40,000 planning grant to fund a stormwater and wastewater infrastructure planning study. These federal dollars are from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program administered by the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA). Parker City is currently experiencing several water infrastructure issues, including significant overflow and infiltration issues, a water treatment plant in poor repair, and unnecessary storm drainage into a nearby creek.

Headlines

Crews from the Board of Water Supply have closed two lanes of Ala Moana Boulevard in Honolulu, Hawaii while they work to repair a leak on a 12-inch water main. According to the BWS, the water main was originally installed in 1934.

Water pollution is a major concern for many areas, and in Frostburg, Maryland tons of raw sewage have been overflowing into Georgia’s Creek for years now. The three combined sewer overflow sites in Frostburg discharge into the creek up to 60 times a year. Public works officials are working with the State of Maryland to eliminate the overflows. The cost for Frostburg alone is more than 16 million dollars. The completion year for the elimination of all overflows in Allegany County is 2023.

In Florida, Panama City Beach Council members approved a proposal to extend sewer lines. Three hundred and thirty thousand dollars of the cost will come from the Department of Environmental Protection fines levied against the airport authority and contractor Phoenix Construction.

Stimulus Spotlight

The Boone County, Missouri Regional Sewer District will receive $128,000 of stimulus money. Regional sewer district Director Tom Ratermann said the sewer district will use its funds to upgrade five wastewater treatment plants.

City work crews in Bandera, Texas are busy, doing the drainage work and installing new sewer pipes that the City of Bandera received a stimulus grant to complete.

Sewer Rate News

Weirton, West Virginia
Traverse City, Michigan
Downs, Illinois
Chicopee, Massachusetts

Thursday’s Water News: Lansing, Michigan to Begin 2010 CSO Projects

bradhannon — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 23:50:58 +0000

Two large areas of Lansing, Michigan’s streets are getting ready for construction as the city’s Combined Sewer Overflow Control Construction project gets underway for 2010. The city needs to install storm sewers, sanitary sewers and water mains to keep raw sewage from flowing into local rivers.

Headlines
After a water main break this morning, the fourth water main break in three years for a section of Overland Park, Kansas, some residents along say they are fed up.

Monday started out in an unexpectedly soggy way for some residents in Fort Worth, Texas after a 54-year-old water main broke flooding eight homes.

Stimulus Spotlight
The USDA has awarded a roughly $9 million grant and a roughly $12 million loan from the economic stimulus funds to the Netarts Oceanside Sanitary District in Oregon for a new sewage treatment plant.

The Village of Ellsworth, Wisconsin is looking at alternatives and plans to help improve the village wastewater treatment plant, contingent on receiving grant and stimulus money.

Sewer Rate News
Burlington, Massachusetts
Davenport, Iowa
Glendale, Arizona
Half Moon Bay, California

Wednesday’s Water News: Indianapolis Looks at Public-Private Partnernships

bradhannon — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:39:27 +0000

Faced with aging infrastructure and a pledge to not raise taxes, Indianapolis, Mayor Greg Ballard wants to use public-private partnerships to raise new revenue that could fund water and sewer upgrades and other citywide projects. The city’s water and sewer systems are in need of $4 billion in upgrades over the next 15 years which would require rate increases of more than 400 percent.

Headlines
Two 12-inch water main breaks shut down traffic Tuesday night along Route 1 in Arlington, Virginia detouring traffic for about a mile through one of the county’s heaviest-traveled corridors.

The Mayor of Port Clinton, Ohio Mayor has announced the first phase of a sewer separation improvement project is scheduled to begin which will include a new stormwater pumping station and other improvements to the storm sewer.

Stimulus Spotlight
From now until October, as many as 30 construction workers in Galion, Ohio will stay busy excavating and installing sewer main lines thanks in part to $3.4 million in exconomic stimulus funds.

The new water treatment facility and desalination plant in Swansea, Massachusetts has received $1.2 million in federal stimulus funds and a low-interest $5.7 million loan from the state. Crews are now drilling pipes under Interstate-195 to connect to the existing 2.2-mile pipeline.

Sewer Rate News
Daphne, Alabama
East Brunswick, New Jersey
East Tawas, Michigan
Wickenburg, Arizona

Thursday’s Water News: North Carolina Town Recevies $4M for Wastewater Treatment

bengann — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:23:41 +0000

More than $4 million has been awarded to the town of Beulaville, North Carolina from the USDA for improvements to the town’s wastewater treatment plant. USDA is giving the town of approximately 2,000 residents a $2.295 million grant and a $2.3 million loan. The interest rate for the loan is 3.25-percent and must be paid back over the next 40 years.

Headlines
Ground was broken today in Oxnard, California on a construction project that is expected to give the city one of the most advanced wastewater treatment plants in the state. The project which is expected to cost $60 million will be partially funded by a $20 million grant from the U.S. Department of the Interior and $15 million from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders announced the city posted its best sewage-spill figures of the decade in 2009. The city reported 38 spills last year, down from 365 in 2000 and 62 in 2008.

Stimulus Spotlight
Massachusetts State Treasurer Tim Cahill, who chairs the Massachusetts Water Pollution Abatement Trust, has announced that the Trust has successfully committed and certified its $185 million allotment of federal stimulus funding to 115 local drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects.

While Kentucky has already obligated its $73 million share of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding for water and sewer projects, there is still money available.

Sewer Rate News
Doyelstown, Pennsylvania
Fairfield, Iowa
Maumelle, Arkansas

Tuesday’s Water News: Kentucky City Gets $1.3M for Water Treatment Plant

bradhannon — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 22:27:57 +0000

Kentucky congressman Ben Chandler presented the city of Harrodsburg, with a $1.3 million appropriation for improvements to a wastewater treatment plant. The improvements will benefit about 3,000 customers and will keep the facility in compliance with state regulations.

Headlines
In Salt Lake City, a water main break made a mess of roads near the Capitol and damaged some homes Tuesday morning.

A water main break in Rowan County, Kentucky has forced a shutdown of the school system. Maysville Community and Technical College also canceled classes because of the problem.

An estimated 7,500 gallons of sewage spilled this morning into the Santa Margarita River from the USMC base at Camp Pendleton in Southern California.

Stimulus Spotlight
In California, the Santa Clara Valley Water District will vote on a plan today to build a new $52 million recycled water facility at a water pollution control plant in San Jose. Financing for the project includes $11 million from the city of San Jose, $3 million from the state and$8.25 million from the economic stimulus funds.

Federal stimulus funds and a partnership between sewer districts are making possible a total rehabilitation of the Slater, South Carolina sewer system built in 1928. The $2.2 million in stimulus money will construct new lines and allow Slater’s Sanitary Sewer District to take ownership of the system once it is constructed.

Sewer Rate News
Altamont, Illinois
Howell, Michigan
Bellingham, Massachusetts

Monday’s Water News: Aqua Pennsylvania to Spend $250M in Infrastructure Improvements

bengann — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 00:45:28 +0000

Aqua Pennsylvania has announced it has nearly $32 million worth of capital improvements in store for Chester County, including the replacement of aging water mains and two major distribution systems. The amount is part of the $250 million that the water utility is expected to spend statewide this year to maintain and improve its water infrastructure.

Headlines
In South Carolina, the North Charleston wastewater treatment plant has experienced a sewage spill with more than 5,000 gallons untreated wastewater being released into the Ashley River after a sewer line broke.

Residents in Honolulu were asked to conserve water after a 16-inch main break. The main was installed in 1964 and supplies much of the water to the North Shore area.

Stimulus Spotlight
Ridgefield and Brookfield are among the Connecticut communities that have begun local drinking-water projects in time to meet a deadline for using federal economic-stimulus money.

Massachusetts State Treasurer Tim Cahill, who chairs the state’s Water Pollution Abatement Trust, has announced that the Trust has successfully committed and certified its $185 million allotment of federal stimulus funding to 115 local drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects.

Sewer Rate News

Dillon, Colorado

Egelston Township, Michigan

Lenoir, North Carolina

Maumelle, Arkansas

Friday’s Water News: U.S. and Canada End Dispute Over “Buy American”

bengann — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 18:03:10 +0000

A yearlong dispute between the U.S. and Canada over “Buy American” rules in the economic stimulus package has been settled. The deal will allow use of Canadian products in many local U.S. projects funded by the stimulus program. Municipalities receiving stimulus funding for water and sewer projects have complained that a shortage of products, including water filters made by General Electric, were causing construction delays.

Headlines
Officials in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin say it might be days before residents can safely drink water after a water main break Friday morning caused a pressure drop that’s still affecting the city.

The City Council in Johnston, Iowa has approved a detailed stormwater management plan that recommends nine priority projects — at a cost of more than $8.4 million — in an effort to improve water quality and quantity by reducing runoff and increasing infiltration.

Stimulus Spotlight
The town of Greenville, Wisconsin will receive $1.2 million in federal stimulus grant money to support its new water tower construction project and related water main work. The grant will pay for half of the cost of the project.

Federal stimulus funding for Ardmore, Oklahoma will help renovate part of a sewer line that is more than 50 years old. The city will receive $1 million for the project but have to cover any additional costs of the project which are expected to be $250,000.

Sewer Rate News
Carson City, Nevada
Montgomery County, Maryland
Orem, Utah
Rockport, Massachusetts

Monday Headlines: SRF Programs Receive $3.3M in President’s Budget

bengann — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:42:04 +0000

In President Obama”s Fiscal Year 2011 Budget released today, the Clean Water State Revolving Fund received $2 billion and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund received $1.287 billion. The proposed budget levels for the SRF programs are $100 million less than each program is receiving for FY 2010, but near its historical highs.

Headlines
Sewer problems are plaguing a street in Gautier, Mississippi that has a lingering sewer smell that has affected residents for years after every heavy rain. The city is spending $12,000 to clean out a sewer line that affects the street and installing a liner in a sewer main at a cost of $100,000.

Gloucester, Massachusetts is set to borrow $20 million to pay for federally mandated sewer improvements — including a renovation of a wastewater treatment plant and continuation of a four-year-old combined sewer overflow project.

Stimulus Spotlight
Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado is planning to use money from the economic stimulus to replace part of the water system for the historic Onahu Lodge in the Kawuneeche Valley.

Nearly $16 million in economic stimulus bonds will be used to improve water systems in Kanawha County, West Virginia. The first part of the two-pronged water project would establish a water main using $11 million of the bonds.

Sewer Rate News
Livonia, Michigan
Pima County, Arizona
Temple, Georgia
Worcester, Massachusetts

Wednesday’s Water News: 3 Separate Water Main Breaks Today in L.A.

bradhannon — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 01:22:03 +0000

Three water main breaks today in Los Angeles have kept the city’s Public Works department busy. Since September 1, the city has recorded more than 35 major ruptures in its water system where streets were flooded and the pavement buckled.

Headlines
Public works crews were busy for hours in Stowe, Pennsylvania after a water main ruptured. The 24-inch main likely ruptured because of excess pressure in the system, and approximately 55 customers were without water until the main could be repaired and the water was found safe for consumption.

A water main break in Nederland, Colorado closed the towns’s middle school and high school after both buildings were without water service.

Stimulus Spotlight
Federal economic stimulus funding for two local wastewater projects were formally approved Monday, when the state released $185 million for projects across Massachusetts. North Attleboro is getting $441,000 to detect and fix leaks in its sewer system and Dighton-Rehoboth Regional schools will receive $650,000 for a new sewage treatment facility.

The town of Batavia, New York has received $850,000 in money from the economic stimulus to upgrade more than 10,000 feet of lines in its sewer district. Work should begin in the spring and will take about a year to complete.

Sewer Rate News
Edwardsville, Kansas
Great Falls, Montana
Olney, Illinois