September 2, 2010
Thursday’s Water News: $25.8M Sewer Repair Project in Charleston, W.V. Moving Forward
A $25.8 million sewer rehabilitation project for Charleston, West Virginia got the needed funding to move forward yesterday after the state Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council voted unanimously to award a low-interest loan to the Charleston Sanitary Board for sewer line upgrades and replacements.
Headlines
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is investigating the release of more than 50,000 gallons of sewage into a creek in the city of Warrensburg. Such discharges have the potential to contaminate lakes and streams, causing serious water quality problems.
Work on an $8 million, 1 million-gallon water tank project at The Highlands, a dining, entertainment and shopping complex in Triadelphia, West Virginia, is expected to begin soon. Funding for the project includes a $6.4 million federal Economic Development Administration grant and a $1.6 million West Virginia Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council loan.
Stimulus Spotlight
Plans are still under way in Independence, Missouri for the Little Blue Valley Sewer District’s $85.9 million in improvements. The district will use Build America bonds by the end of 2010 to finance the improvements. The bonds, part of the federal economic stimulus effort, aim to reduce the cost of borrowing for state and local government entities.
Flooding on U.S. Highway 101 in Seaside, Oregon is such an important issue that it took the top spot in a list of 65 projects that local officials want to see fixed. The list represents the projects that could be financed with federal stimulus funds or state grants.
Sewer Rate News
Altavista, Virginia
Granville, Ohio
Holbrook, Massachusetts
Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
August 17, 2010
Tuesday’s Water News: Small North Carolina Town to Receive $3.3M for New Sewer System
In North Carolina, the Currituck County Board of Commissioners has approved plans to build a new public sewer system in the small communinity of Moyock after three years of debate and negotiation. The new $3.3 million plant would treat 100,000 gallons per day but could be expanded to 600,000 gallons per day.
Headlines
A water line break drowned a Tulsa, Oklahoma neighborhood in acres of water on Monday afternoon. The water flooded the street, dozens of yards, and swamped several homes. As the water receded, it left a gaping hole and a buckled road in its muddy wake.
Logan, Utah Mayor Randy Watts said the state Department of Environmental Quality has given the city seven years to cut by half the amount of phosphorous its sewage lagoons, located on the west side of town, discharge to Cutler Reservoir.
A $5.2 million upgrade to the village of Winneconne, Wisconsin’s wastewater treatment plant has started and is expected to take 18 months to complete. The project includes work to upgrade and increase the facility’s ability for wastewater treatment that should be good for at least 25 years.
Stimulus Spotlight
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has awarded more than $1.46 million in grants for engineering studies to 50 public water supply systems throughout the state. These awards, which are funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will fund engineering reports and facility plans that will include data collection, analysis and water system planning.
Sewer Rate News
East Moline, Illinois
Galesburg, Illinois
M0yock, North Carolina
Northport, Alabama
August 12, 2010
Thursday’s Water News: Drinking Water Service Shut Down for Residents in Ames, Iowa
Officials in Ames, Iowa have closed the city’s water supply after a water main broke beneath a flooded creek. The shut down leaves most of the city’s 55,000 residents without drinking water. Iowa has been hit with widespread flooding after three nights of storms.
Headlines
Opposition has emerged to a proposal to build a big commercial wastewater treatment plant in Sussex County, Delaware that’s envisioned to serve thousands of new homes spreading northwest from Rehoboth Bay.
The Y Bridge and a portion of Main Street in Zanesville, Ohio was expected to be open this morning after a water main break caused a closure on Wednesday. The bridge had to be closed because a large portion of the road had to be torn up to repair the break.
Stimulus Spotlight
The city of Tacoma, Washington’s Water System is issuing $73.65 million in Build America Bonds–a program created in the economic stimulus– for repairs of its water and sewer systems.
In addition, the city of Sarasota, Florida is issuing $33.7 million in Build America Bonds for a system that provides water supply, treatment and delivery to nearly 19,000 residents.
Sewer Rate News
Malvern, Ohio
New Hanover County, North Carolina
Sturgis, Michigan
Whittier, California
August 9, 2010
Monday’s Water News: Iowa Community Needs Up to $60 Million for Sewer Separation Project
The West Hill sewer separation project in Muscatine, Iowa will take up to a dozen years to complete and will cost between $40 million and $60 million. Muscatine is one of 10 Iowa cities with combined sewer overflows and the EPA has given the city until the end of 2024 to complete the project.
Headlines
The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments will receive a $308,000 state grant to help Detroit integrate green technologies into a combined sewer overflow system. The city is required by the state to capture and treat combined sewer overflow into waterways to meet water quality standards.
Late last week, a ruptured water main turned into a a huge disruption when several downtown Los Angeles businesses were flooded and a street had to be shut down.
Stimulus Spotlight
Thanks to money from the economic stimulus, Olympic National Park in Washington is receiving $3 million dollars for several projects including $810,529 to double the capacity of the sanitary sewer treatment system in the Hoh Rain Forest, which serves the campground, picnic area, visitors’ center and employee housing.
Sewer Rate News
Lewisville, Texas
Monette, Arkansas
New Riegel, Ohio
Somerton, Arizona
August 3, 2010
Tuesday’s Water News: EPA Fines Five Pennslvania Sewage Plants
The Environmental Protection Agency has issued five separate fines for violations by Pennsylvania sewage treatment facilities across the state. The fines have reportedly been issued because these plants are failing to test water issued by industrial plants.
Headlines
The citizens of Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin are furious with the town council after recent sewage backups soaked 700 homes. Residents claim the flooding happened because of the town’s poor sewage system, as these floods are a regular occurrence.
An electrical malfunction caused raw sewage to pour into West Fork Stones River in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The problem was spotted after dead fish began floating on the river’s surface.
Heavy rains in Duluth, Minnesota caused a 49,000 gallon mixture of sewage and rainwater to flow into Lake Superior.
Stimulus Spotlight
Thanks to the stimulus package, a combination of federal grants and low interest loans amounting to $668,000 dollars is going to help the town of Haledon, New Jersey reline 10,000 feet of sewage pipes.
Sewer Rate News
East Moline, Illinois
Mount Airy, North Carolina
North Ridgeville, Ohio
Poplarville, Mississippi
July 20, 2010
Tuesday’s Water News: Milwaukee Has Its Largest Sewer Overflow of 2010
Rainstorms in Milwaukee this weekend caused 506 million gallons of untreated wastewater to leak into local streams and Lake Michigan. The storm that caused the overflow produced over 5 inches of rain in just over a single day.
Headlines
A six-inch pipe burst in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Monday. The pipe ruptured in the early afternoon, causing traffic problems.
A sewage spill into Lake Cornelius resulted in a swimming ban being issued by officials in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. A small treatment facility leaked 375 gallons of sewage into a nearby lake in Davidson, North Carolina.
A four-inch water main ruptured in Narberth, Pennsylvania this afternoon leaving residents of an apartment complex without water. The age of the pipe is the suspected cause of the break.
Stimulus Spotlight
Using stimulus funds, the City of San Francisco is issuing $387 Build America Bonds. The interest on these bonds is covered by federal stimulus funds. The city plans to use the proceeds to fund numerous projects including water infrastructure improvement and repair.
Sewer Rate News
Blue Springs, Missouri
Caledonia, Minnesota
Eagle Lake, Florida
Roosevelt, New Jersey
July 16, 2010
Friday’s Water News: City of Macon (Ga.) to Issue $50M in Bonds for Water, Sewer Upgrades
In Georgia, the Macon Water Authority has approved the refinancing of $14.2 million in bonds and the eventual sale of $50 million more. The new bonds will pay for a long list of improvements to the authority’s water distribution system, sewers, replacement of a sewer line that collapsed under the Macon levee last year, and more.
Headlines
California state water quality have fined the Sonoma Valley County Sanitation District $350,000 for a series of spills that have poured 930,077 gallons of raw sewage into waterways in the past three years.
Sewer overflows may affect beachgoers in Milwaukee this weekend. At 9 AM this morning, the main tunnels, which hold a remarkable 432 million gallons, were more than 98 percent full.
The City of Greensboro, North Carolina had 1.45 million gallons of untreated wastewater spilled into South Buffalo Creek on Wednesday. According to the city, the discharge lasted over 6 hours due to a power and generator failure that was complicated by extreme flows caused by heavy rain.
Stimulus Spotlight
The Town of Pittsford, Vermont is hoping to receive economic stimulus funding available through the USDA that would cover 45 percent of a $1.9 million sewer project.
Sewer Rate News
Keokuk, Iowa
Monroe, Pennsylvania
July 6, 2010
Tuesday’s Water News: Thompson’s Lake in Albany, New York Closed After Sewage Spill
Popular swimming spot Thompson’s Lake in Albany, New York has been closed until further notice due to a nearby sewage spill. The lake may be contaminated due to the nearby campground pump failure. This happened Sunday night, so tourists who came to the lake to vacation could not swim in the blistering heat on Monday and are expected to not be able to swim until the water is tested on Thursday.
Headlines
A sewage spill closes Little Corona Beach in Orange County, California. It seems that a sewer main break at nearby Newport Coast Drive poured 18,000 gallons of wastewater into Buck Gulch, which flows directly in to Little Corona. Officials are still investigating the cause of the problem.
Heavy rains cause wastewater overflows in Eddyville, Iowa. After a storm, citizens in the town are now dealing with sewage in their houses. The wastewater system could not handle the rain and has caused Eddyville officials to ask for help from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to ease the pressure on the sewage system.
Raw sewage continues to flow into the Ohio River from about 1,000 homes and businesses in Weirton, West Virginia. This has been an ongoing problem for fifty years, and officials are struggling to fix it. he main problem has been with funding. The city has allocated 130,000 dollars in loans to fix the leaks, but the cost of fixing the spills has been estimated to be between 2-4 million dollars.
Stimulus Spotlight
Thanks to the stimulus package, and specifically Build America Bonds, the sewage system in Lansing, Michigan is getting a complete overhaul. The town issued these low interest bonds totaling 20 million dollars to fix problems in sewage as well as mending roadways.
A combination of federal grants and low interest loans is helping the town of Dana, Indiana complete a 6.7 million dollar project for a new wastwater treatment plant, as well as new sewers and lift stations. The lack of a good sewer system has caused a decline in the town’s economy in recent years, and officials are sure that this will strengthen the town’s businesses.
Sewer Rate News
San Mateo, California
Porterdale, Georgia
American Fork, Utah
Garner, North Carolina
June 30, 2010
Wednesday’s Water News: Millions of Gallons of Sewage Pours into Mississippi River
A wastewater pump in St. Louis failed, allowing millions of gallons of sewage to spill directly into the Mississippi River. City officials have fixed the pump and claim the drinking water is safe. However, state EPA officials were notified late and are still investigating the situation.
Headlines
A hot springs Resort in Ukiah, Oregon has been fined over $500,000 due to sewage violations over the last ten years. Officials say the resort had been operating illegal sewage lagoons and failing to treat its wastewater properly. The resulting sewage was leaking into nearby creeks and contaminating the water.
Some 60,000 vehicles that would normally take Hoosick Street in Troy, New York are being detoured today, and for the next several days, as the city fixes the apparent water main break that flooded the streets on Tuesday evening.
A restraining order has been issues to stop a condo project, in Lake Ozark, Missouri from dumping sewer sludge into the Lake of the Ozarks. Inspections by the state Department of Natural Resources showed the wastewater treatment system was not operating properly allowing sludge and visible solids to pass through to the Lake.
Stimulus Spotlight
Thanks to the economic stimulus package, residents of the 14th Ward in Chicago, Illinois are going to have new pipes installed underneath the city to help wastewater flow. The new pipes will cost $2.4 million and will be replacing pipes from 1910.
Sewer Rate News
Benton, Illinois
Bossier City, Louisiana
Clayton, North Carolina
Haverhill, Massachusetts
Morestown, New Jersey
June 25, 2010
Friday’s Water News: Sewer Upgades for Florida Keys Need More Funding
Despite Florida Gov. Charlie Crist’s (I) authorization this month of as much as $200 million for a long-term effort to provide upgraded sewer systems for the Florida Keys, the prospects are poor for funding in total the estimated $937-million project.
Headlines
John Hosch of Cartersville, Georgia is suing the state of West Virginia for not building proper wastewater facilities to live up to the Clean Water Act. Hosch ran into problems when he sold lots of a residential plan he was developing and was then denied a permit to build a sewage system. This denial was due to a lack of proper wastewater treatment facilities. The buyers of the lots sued him, so he, in turn, has sued the state.
Contaminants like e-coli are believed to be in Wilkinson Creek after sewage leaks in Bradley County, Tennessee. Officials are looking into the problem and will determine the cause and cost of fixing it.
After heavy rains, basements in Chicago, Illinois were flooded with raw sewage. The rains overran the septic system of the city, and residents are being forced to clean up the mess left behind.
Stimulus Spotlight
An upsurge in stimulus water projects will begin this summer. Last year, there were 129 projects provided by the stimulus, this year, that number skyrockets to 2,800. Considering state needs for waste and drinking water infrastructure are above $500 billion, the increase is a necessity for overwhelmed state and local budgets.
States and local governments are slashing spending on infrastructure projects so fast that even federal stimulus money hasn’t filled in the gap. Investment in infrastructure is on pace to drop almost 7% this year to $269 billion, according to a USA TODAY analysis of federal data. That would be the first decline in state and local construction spending since the Census Bureau started tracking in 1993.
Sewer Rate News
Marion Township, Michigan
Rochester, New York
South Bend, Indiana
Taylorsville, North Carolina
Vigo County, Indiana
