06.04.09
Thursday’s Water News: Massive Water Main Break in Norfolk
A major thoroughfare in Norfolk, Virginia was reopened this morning after a break in a 30-inch water main flooded the nearby railroad underpass in 6 feet of water Wednesday evening.
Headlines
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is looking for public input on two sewer projects proposed by the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District, one to serve the city’s growing northeast side and the other to shore up a deteriorating pipe.
Water quickly rushed down a road in the eastside of El Paso, Texas early this morning after a rupture in a 8-inch water main
Stimulus Spotlight
In New York, three Capital Region counties will receive $20.5 million of federal stimulus funding to build water treatment facilities or upgrade sewer systems.
Seven storm-water projects in the Kansas suburbs of Kansas City, Missouri will receive nearly $3.1 million combined from the recently passed economic stimulus legislation.
Sewer Rate News
Fontana, California
Granby, Massachusetts
Mount Vernon-Lisbon, Iowa
05.27.09
Wednesday’s Water News: Norwich, Conn. Raising Rates to Finance Repairs
Norwich, Connecticut sewer users will receive a 40 percent hike in their sewer bills effective July 1 as the city embarks on a massive modernization effort on its wastewater treatment plant and other aging facilities.
Headlines
Friday is the earliest a boil order can be lifted for the city of Brazil, Indiana after a break in an 18-inch water line.
The village of Plover, Wisconsin is planning a $9.2 million upgrade to its wastewater treatment plant. The work is needed to help the plant handle a steady increase in users.
Stimulus Spotlight
The state of Florida is setting aside about $13 million in federal stimulus loans for building an estimated $15.5 million in drinking water and sewer projects in Vero Beach, Florida starting this fall.
In West Virginia, Huntington City Council must adopt a 23 percent sewer rate increase by early June or risk losing an opportunity for federal stimulus dollars. The city’s current rate does not meet the application requirements for federal stimulus funding that the state received for sewer projects earlier this year.
Sewer Rate News
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Hendersonville, North Carolina
Morgantown, West Virginia
05.12.09
Tuesday Headlines: Next BIG Sewer Project Scheduled in Portland, Ore.
Work is scheduled to begin next month on a massive sewer project in the Northwest Portland, Oregon industrial area as part of the city’s Big Pipe program.
Headlines
An eight-inch water-main break in Phoenix Tuesday afternoon has closed streets and left multiple homes with little or no water.
Service is expected to be restored Tuesday after a water main break in El Cajon, California. The burst 12-inch main spewed water causing the road and sidewalk to buckle.
Wisconsin state officials say municipal water construction projects will get a $143 million boost from federal stimulus funding. The application deadline is June 30, and priority is to go to projects ready to proceed to construction in 12 months or sooner.
Holly Springs, North Carolina will receive $81,600 in federal stimulus money for a solar-powered mixer to maintain water quality in one of the Town’s elevated storage tanks.
Sewer Rate News
Fruitland, Maryland
Hampshire, Illinois
Wheeling, West Virginia
04.28.09
Tuesday Headlines: Massive Water Main Break in Downtown Baltimore
All city buildings in downtown Baltimore and the federal and circuit courts were closed Tuesday after a massive water main break. Public Works officials had been planning repairs in the area, but the break occurred before those repairs could start. Mayor Sheila Dixon says the line that broke is about 100-years-old.
Headlines
In Indiana, the city of Richmond has issued a combined sewer overflow alert and residents are advised to avoid all contact with the East Fork and Whitewater Rivers for at least 72 hours.
Sewer Overflows persist in Milwaukee after more than 4 inches of rain fell on the area. The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewer District is blending partially treated sewage with fully treated wastewater and in an attempt to prevent basement backups in the area served by the district and to prevent overflows of separate sanitary sewers to urban streams.
Lake Ozark, Missouri has been sentenced by a U.S. District Court in a case involving a sewage spill that occurred in the fall of 2007. As a result of the spill the city was sentenced to a $50,000 fine and five years probation.
Stimulus Spotlight
The Salt Lake City area will see improvements to its drinking water systems after receiving millions in stimulus funds to meet new pressure and capacity standards, as well as to provide safer drinking water.
Sewer Rate News
Holts Summit, Missouri
Worcester, Massachusetts
04.14.09
Tuesday Headlines: Suit Filed Against Benicia, Calif. for Sewer Overflows
A second lawsuit has been brought against the city of Benicia, California for sewer overflows. At issue in the case is a city sewer line that has backed up and overflowed into the plantiff’s side yard several times over the years.
Headlines
Portage Township, Michigan has received a grant from the USDA totaling 75 percent of the cost of the project to install a sewer line
Oregon environmental regulators have fined the city of Portland $16,000 for two failures in one of the city’s sewer lines last year.
Recent storms contributed in Baldwin County, Alabama to another sewer overflow after heavy rain swept through the area.
More than a mile of sewer line will be replaced under a bid approved by officials in Bowling Green, Kentucky on Monday.
Sewer Rate News
Mayville, Wisconsin
Quincy, Illinois
Riviera Beach, California
Sackets Harbor, New York
04.03.09
Friday Headlines: Duluth Reaches Final Agreement to Fix Sewer Overflows
Duluth, Minnesota has entered into a final agreement with the EPA and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency on a consent decree to implement a long-term plan to fix the city’s sewer overflow problem by 2016. The total cost of the plan is estimated at $161 million.
Headlines
A cracked stormwater line about 45 feet underground is the likely cause of a large sinkhole n the parking lot of a government building in Wausau, Wisconsin. Crews must inspect wastewater lines to find and repair cracks before refilling the hole.
In Macon, Georgia, recent heavy rains have caused approximately 65,000 gallons of sewage to spill into a nearby creek near the Ocmulgee River.
The General Manager of Washingtonm, D.C.’s Water and Sewer Authority will resign this summer after 12 years. A move aimed at restoring public confidence following the discovery of excessive lead in the city’s tap water five years ago.
The city of Middletown, New York will receive $27.8 million from the economic stimulus package to fund a wastewater project begun in mid-February.
Sewer Rate News
Augusta Township, Michigan
Duncansville, Pennsylvania
Staten Island, New York
02.26.09
Thursday Headlines: Obama Wants More Funding for Water Infrastructure
States would receive more federal dollars for drinking water and sewer systems under the budget President Obama proposed today. The President’s Fiscal Year 2010 budget would provide $3.9 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. The White House expects the increased investment to fund over 1,000 clean water projects and nearly 700 drinking water projects annually.
Headlines
New Mexico is set to receive nearly $40 million in federal stimulus money to improve water quality, drinking water infrastructure and sewage treatment systems. State officials agree however that the stimulus money will only begin to address the its need for water system improvements.
In Michigan, more than 100 million gallons of sewage flowed to the Saginaw River earlier this month after an overflow from the Saginaw Wastewater Treatment Plant. For 2009, has had combined sewer overflows totaling 112,000 gallons.
A water main break is causing problems for business owners in Charleston, West Virginia this morning. Some business owners affected by the break have report water entering their buildings.
In Milwaukee, traffic on the Locust Street bridge was reduced in both directions after a 21-inch combined sewer pipe collapsed opening up a huge sinkhole.
Sewer Rate News
Charlottesville, Virginia
Saratoga Springs, New York
02.25.09
Wednesday Headlines: 890,000 Gallon Sewage Spill in Bay Area
It happens a lot this time of year in the Bay Area. A sewage spill in Richmond, California released 890,000 gallons of raw sewage mixed with rain water into the East Bay. Warning signs have been posted along the shoreline asking people and animals to stay out of the water.
Headlines
Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear was in Louisville today to outline the state’s plan for spending an estimated $3 billion in stimulus funding from the federal government. The plan includes about $71 million for water and sewer line projects.
Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm visited two local communities Tuesday to highlight drinking water projects that could be funded by the federal economic stimulus program. The state is expecting $168 million for sewer repairs and $67 for drinking water infrastructure.
The city of Binghamton, New York is asking for $300,000 in federal appropriations to continue a project separating sewage lines from storm water drains.
About a foot of water flooded a residential intersection in Chicago after a water main break late Tuesday. Water came up in two different locations in the intersection and there were about 12 inches of water flooding the area.
Sewer Rate News
North Hudson, Wisconsin
Westminster, Maryland
02.12.09
Thursday Headlines: Final Vote on Stimulus Expected Tomorrow
House and Senate Conferees have agreed on a $789 billion economic stimulus conference report which could be voted on as soon as tomorrow. The conference report includes $4 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, $2 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, $1.28 billion to support $3.8 billion in grants and loans for rural water and wastewater infrastructure and $1 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation to provide clean, reliable drinking water to rural areas and to ensure adequate water supply to western localities impacted by drought.
Headlines
Flash flooding and temperature swings have put severe stress on St. Louis’ sewer system and the Metropolitan Sewer District has reported nearly 50 streets have experienced sewer backups. The worst of the incidents occurred when a tractor trailer became stuck in a 20 foot sinkhole caused by a broken main.
The Saginaw River is full of sewage this morning, after wastewater treatment plants in Bay City, Essexville and Saginaw all reported overflows. These are the first overflows of the year for these cities.
A spill of hundreds gallons of sewage from a ruptured sanitation line in Imperial Beach, California left a stretch the beach contaminated and closed several facilities near the beach.
A water main break in Sioux Falls, South Dakota caused some traffic problems on a busy street this morning after the water froze creating hazardous driving conditions.
Sewer Rate News
Bonners Ferry, Idaho
Delphos, Ohio
Tomah, Wisconsin
02.11.09
Wednesday Headlines: EPA Sues Akron for Violations
EPA has sued the city of Akron, Ohio seeking millions of dollarsin fines alleging its sewer system has violated federal law for years by dumping excessive pollutants into local rivers. EPA wants to force the city to spend money on improvements to its wastewater treatment system in order to comply with the Clean Water Act and could also seek fines that could climb into several million dollars.
Headlines
Sewer work tops the Peoria, Illinois’ economic stimulus priority list, which includes $12 million to fix the first part of the city’s massive combined sewer overflow project, which still needs approval from EPA.
A hospital in Evansville, Indiana is without its principal water supply after a city water main break. The hospital remained open but surgeries have been canceled and bottled water is being distributed to its 350 patients.
In Washington County, Oregon, a broken main sent water gushing onto State Route 217 this morning, reducing traffic to a single lane in each direction and turning the heavily traveled freeway into an icy mess.
Officials in Ada Township, Michigan say a 16 inch sewer line ruptured, sending “sewer material” into a nearby pond and creek.
Sewer Rate News
Clarendon County, South Carolina
San Andreas, California
Waupun, Wisconsin
Zimmerman, Minnesota
