06.30.09
Tuesday’s Water News: GAO Releases Study on Clean Water Trust Fund
Yesterday, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a study titled Clean Water Infrastructure: A Variety of Issues Need to be Considered When Designing a Clean Water Trust Fund.
GAO was asked to (1) obtain stakeholders’ views on the issues that would need to be addressed in designing and establishing a clean water trust fund and (2) identify and describe potential options that could generate about $10 billion in revenue to support a clean water trust fund.
In designing and establishing a clean water trust fund, stakeholders identified three main issues that would need to be addressed: (1) how a trust fund should be administered and used; 2) what type of financial assistance should be provided; and 3) what activities should be eligible to receive funding from a trust fund. Click here for for a summary of the study.
Headlines
On Thursday of last week, the Senate Appropriations Committe approved $2.1 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF), $1.39 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) and $150 million for targeted water and sewer projects as part of the FY 2010 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. And on Friday, before the Independence Day District Work Period, the House of Representatives passed the FY 2010 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations bill by a vote of 254-173, which includes $2.3 billion for the CWSRF, $1.44 billion for the DWSRF and $160 million for targeted water and sewer projects.
A water main break in Oklahoma City poored thousands of gallons of water onto the streets and into the buildings near downtown including a church charity. The water flowed unabated outside causing a sinkhole, which nearly swallowed the charity’s minivan.
Stimulus Spotlight
The city of Valdosta, Georgia is receiving $10 million in federal economic stimulus funds as part of an expansion of a wastewater treatment plant.
Sewer Rate News
Dyersburg, Tennessee
Holly, Michigan
Warren County, Ohio
06.15.09
Monday’s Water News: Water Main Break Floods Bronx Streets
A water main break transformed four blocks of the Bronx, New York into a swimming pool early Sunday morning, flooding streets, cars and causing tens of thousands of dollars in damage.
Headlines
Last week’s heavy rains caused sewage spills in several Dallas-area cities. The largest spill by far was in Fort Worth, where 1.1 million gallons spilled.
A water main break caused water to spill into a home in West Valley, Utah over the weekend causing muddy water to gush up through a crack in the sidewalk and pour into the home.
Several business, an apartment building and a hotel in San Diego were without water Saturday when a nearby 16-inch water main broke. Twelve hours after the problem was first reported, the hotel’s manager said they still did not have water.
Stimulus Spotlight
The Dayton, Ohio area is getting additional stimulus dollars to improve drinking water quality and fund water pollution control projects. Ohio EPA has added three Montgomery County projects to its revised fundable list for economic stimulus projects.
Sewer Rate News
Grand Ledge, Michigan
Riverdale, Utah
Stillwater, Oklahoma
04.23.09
Thursday Headlines: Senate Bill Introduced to Correct Sewer Overflows
Ohio Senators George Voinovich and Sherrod Brown introduced a bill, the Clean Water Affordability Act of 2009, on Wednesday that would give the EPA more flexibility in dealing with communities with sewer overflow problems and would create a $1.8 billion program over five years to provide federal grants up to 75 percent of a sewer project’s cost. A similar provision in the Water Quality Investment Act (H.R. 1262) passed by the House of Representatives in March includes $2.5 billion in grants over five years for sewer overflow control grants.
Headlines
In Kansas, a project to improve the city of Emporia’s water treatment plant is one of 39 drinking water infrastructure projects in the state selected to receive $360,000 in stimulus help. The money will pay for 20 percent of a $1.8 million project that has been on the city’s capital improvement plan for some time.
A valve malfunction led to a spill of about17,500 gallons of untreated sewage into the Pearl City area of Honolulu. City crews repaired the valve and were able to collect 105,000 gallons of sewage and transfer it back into the treatment system before it entered the harbor.
A large project in Dunwoody, Georgia that will double the size of a waterline bringing raw water from the Chattahoochee River to the reservoirs at a water treatment plant is slowly moving forward.
Sewer Rate News
Chouteau, Oklahoma
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
West Cape May, New Jersey
03.20.09
Friday Headlines: Calif. Communities Want Stimulus Funds for Water Projects
In California, the demand for stimulus funds for water and sewer projects is much greater than the money available. The Department of Public Health has received 2,274 drinking water project proposals with a total value of $6.8 billion, but California can expect to receive only $168 million from the federal stimulus. On the wastewater side, the State Water Resources Control Board is in a similar position, with $280 million to distribute and initial requests that already surpass $1 billion.
Headlines
State legislators in Eastern Oklahoma are encouraging area municipalities to apply for stimulus funds for water and sewer infrastructure projects. The economic stimulus includes $31 million each for Oklahoma’s CWSRF and DWSRF programs, and also includes $70 million for USDA Rural Development’s Water and Wastewater loans and grants.
Jeffersonville, Indiana sewer customers are likely to see their rates double in the next two to four years as the city makes $47.6 million in improvements to its sewer system to eliminate frequent overflows after heavy rains and comply with federal mandates.
Next month, Lansing, Michigan will roll out the next phase of its Combined Sewer Overflow project. Lansing is in the 18th year of a 30-year plan to eliminate sewer overflows from entering into the Grand River.
Following up on a story from Wednesday, it will cost the city of Springfield, Massachusetts more than $500,000 to repair Wednesday’s water main break that spilled more than 5.5 million gallons of water.
Sewer Rate News
Fremont, Ohio
Lakemore, Ohio
Liberty Center, Iowa
03.18.09
Wednesday Headlines: West Virginia City Receives Grant to Correct Overflows
Shinnston, West Virginia has received a $866,000 federal grant to help finance upgrades that should prevent sewage overflows into the West Fork River. The town plans to spend $4.5 million to upgrade its collection and treatment system.
Headlines
The state of California’s Central Valley Water Board has issued more than $225,000 worth of fines to local districts for violations at their wastewater treatment plants.
The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality has extended its deadline for pre-applications for municipalities that wish to get onto the fund’s project priority list as part of the federal stimulus package. To be eligible for this funding, applications must be received by March 25.
City commissioners in Enid, Oklahoma were presented options for borrowing money through the Oklahoma Water Resources Board for a new wastewater treatment plant, installation of a new automated water reading system and construction of two water towers.
Sewer Rate News
Allentown, Pennsylvania
Arkadelphia, Arkansas
Huntington, West Virginia
Mission Springs, California
11.25.08
Tuesday Headlines: Tulsa on Pace for Sewage Spill Record
This year three sewage spills in Tulsa County, Oklahoma has accounted for about half of the 53 million gallons leaked this year and has put the county on pace to record its largest amount of spilled sewage since the state has tracked unpermitted discharges. During those three incidents, an estimated 25 million spilled from sanitary sewer systems in Tulsa County.
Headlines
For the second time in November, work crews in eastern North Carolina are cleaning up a sewage spill after 60,000 gallons spilled on Monday. Only 10,000 gallons of sewage contacted state waters—which occured when the sewage flowed into some roadside ditches.
A pump station failure has caused a large discharge of raw sewage in Waldorf, Maryland. Officials estimate that over 10,000 gallons of raw sewage spilled into a stream near the pumping station, and they are advising the public to avoid contact with the water in that stream.
In Del Mar, California, an area around the San Dieguito River outlet is unsafe for recreation after a 8,090-gallon sewage spill Monday.
Gravel and debris combined to block a portion of Cary North Carolina’s sanitary sewer system resulting in a spill discovered on Sunday. An estimated 3,499 gallons of untreated waste escaped from a manhole and reached an unknown tributary of Crabtree Creek.
Sewer Rate News
Dubuque, Iowa
Lacey Township, New Jersey
Leominster, Massachusetts
Salem, Oregon
That’s it until Monday. Have a happy Thanksgiving.
11.12.08
Wednesday Headlines: Columbus Residents Support Rate Increase
Most speakers at a hearing on proposed water and sewer rate increases for Columbus, Ohio told the city council Tuesday night they supported the higher fees. The increase is to cover the cost of preventing overflow problems that damage creeks and rivers in the area.
Headlines
A one foot section of corroded pipe in Reno, Nevada on Monday caused a water main rupture sending thousands of gallons of water onto the roadway.
In Maryland, residents in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties can sign up for a service that will alert them via e-mail or mobile phone text message if a burst pipe has cut off water service to their home or will snarl traffic.
Aging water infrastructure and a dramatic rise in system repairs forced the city council in Stillwater, Oklahoma to take a look at the situation and find solutions Monday.
Several residents in the Kansas City suburb of Olathe, Kansas recently attended a city council meeting after enduring wastewater backup problems for more than a decade.
Sewer Rate News
Gretna, Pennsylvania
Hollister, Missouri
Portage Township, Michigan
Sugarcreek, Ohio
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.
10.24.08
Friday Headlines: Water Main Break Traps Residents in Apartment Complex
Part of 33rd Street in Tulsa, Oklahoma will be closed for about a week after a water main break flooded a portion of the city Thursday morning. The water trapped people who live at a local apartment complex. City Public Works officials said recent rains caused the ground to shift, which broke the water line.
Headlines
A water main break may leave several hundred homes and businesses in part of Scranton, Pennsylvania without water service. People may have low water pressure, cloudy water or no water service at all.
In Atlantic, Iowa, the city council is considering an expansion of its wastewater treatment facility at a cost of $16 million. Should the city decide to proceed with the option to build a new $16 million facility, rates would increase to $42.55 for the first 3,000 gallons and $2.25 for each 1,000 gallons after that. An average bill would cost just under $50 a month.
With Election Day less than two weeks away, the media is focusing more on a ballot question in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania: Should the state borrow $400 million to pay for water and sewer improvements? Half the $400 million would go toward grants, and the rest would be issued as low-interest loans.
The village of Middleport has received a $140,169 low-interest loan from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to help plan long-term control of combined sewer overflows. Such overflows are a major cause of water pollution and can have adverse effect on human health.
Sewer Rate News
Blacklake, Georgia
Cape Elizabeth, Maine
Richmond, Missouri
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
