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Sunday, September 20, 2009

Environment - "Attorney General signs decree to improve Jeff’s sewer problems" [Updated]

That was the heading to this story by Chris Quay Sept. 17th in the Louisville Courier Journal. Some quotes:

Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller said Thursday that he and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management have signed a consent decree to spur fixes in Jeffersonville’s sewer operation.

The city’s Sanitary Sewer Board agreed to the terms of the decree last month after it was signed by Mayor Tom Galligan, but still needed to be signed by Zoeller before it became official, said Bryan Corbin, an attorney general spokesman.

The Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Justice have also agreed to the terms of the decree.

Facing hefty fines over violations of the federal Clean Water Act because of sewer overflows into the Ohio River, the city entered into negotiations with several agencies, including the EPA, to reach a settlement. * * *

The negotiations took about three years, said Larry Thomas, a spokesman for Jeffersonville Mayor Tom Galligan’s office.

“This is the result we expected” with all agencies getting on board with the terms of the decree, Thomas said.

The city was fined about $165,000 — half to be paid to the state and half to the EPA.

According to the attorney general, the penalty paid to the state could be reduced to $8,250 as long as the city agrees to certain environmental projects, such as a rain garden at Preservation Park.

The city has projects planned including construction of a new water treatment facility and improvements to downtown areas that experience recurring overflow problems, Thomas said.

Residents also may see a hike in sewer rates to fund new projects, he said.

Average monthly sewer bills, now about $24, could climb to $45 in a series of phased increases under terms of the decree, but it allows the city to keep rates manageable and gives the city a chance to phase in improvements within a reasonable amount of time.

Thomas said a long-term plan could take 15 to 20 years.

Thanks to AG Zoeller's office, the ILB is able to post a number of the documents that make up this settlement:[Updated 9/22/09] "Evansville water utility sued by EPA, IDEM," is the headline to a story today in the Evansville Courier & Press reported by Dan Shaw. Some quotes:
Federal and state environmental agencies are suing the City of Evansville over alleged illegal discharges of sewage to the Ohio River and other public waterways.

The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana-Evansville Division, threatens to impose stiff fines on the city. * * *

Many of the discharges result from Evansville’s using, in a lot of cases, the same sewers to convey both rainwater and sewage. During storms, such lines can be overwhelmed, causing them to discharge untreated water directly into the river.

Many cities, especially in the Midwest and East, are contending with the same problems. Since 1994, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has directed cities throughout the United States to reduce the frequency of such discharges. Evansville officials have said they are working on a plan that will give the city 20 years to prevent sewage from entering the Ohio River.

In a news release, Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel pledged to fight the charges vigorously.

The C&P also provides a link to the 23-page complaint.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on September 20, 2009 01:08 PM
Posted to Environment