Fort Smith, Arkansas Agrees to Upgrade Sewer System, Reduce Raw Sewage Discharges

City will also develop a program to help low-income communities improve sewer infrastructure.

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Justice and the state of Arkansas announced that the city of Fort Smith, Ark., will upgrade its sewer collection and treatment system over the next 12 years.

Intended to reduce discharges of raw sewage and other pollutants into local waterways, the upgrade is expected to cost $255 million plus the cost of routine operation and maintenance.

Under a settlement filed in federal court in the Western District of Arkansas, Fort Smith will also pay a $300,000 civil penalty and spend $400,000 on a program to help low-income areas of the city repair and replace privately owned portions of the sewer network.

This agreement resolves alleged Clean Water Act violations related to Fort Smith’s failure to properly operate and maintain its sewer collection and treatment system. Fort Smith also violated limits for discharges of various pollutants from two wastewater treatment plants numerous times over the last decade.

Many of the manholes and pump stations from which Fort Smith’s sanitary sewage overflows occur are in low-income and minority communities.

To cut sewage discharges, Fort Smith will conduct a comprehensive assessment of its sewer system to identify defects and places where stormwater may be entering the system. The city will also repair all sewer pipe segments and manholes that are likely to fail within the next 10 years, develop projects to improve its sewers’ performance and implement a program to clean the system of debris like grease and tree roots.

Fort Smith will also implement a water-monitoring program to determine whether human waste is entering and being discharged from the city’s stormwater system.

The implementation of the consent decree will reduce discharges of 3,492 pounds of total suspended solids, 3,343 pounds of biological oxygen demand, 543 pounds of nitrogen and 78 pounds of phosphorus from the Fort Smith sewage system each year.

The proposed settlement is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval.

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency



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