Tropical Storm Michael caused more than a million gallons of untreated wastewater to overflow from various facilities in Greensboro, North Carolina. This is the second time this fall that storms caused sewage overflows in the city, according to the News & Record: flooding during Hurricane Florence last month also sent untreated wastewater into surrounding areas, including a nearby creek.The city says the areas have been inspected and cleaned as necessary.
A wastewater treatment facility in Ashland, Wisconsin, overflowed over the weekend after the area received two-and-a-half inches of rain. It was the 2oth time in just five years that the facility overflowed.
The two incidents highlight the challenge that municipalities across the country face in terms of water and wastewater management: aging infrastructure means cities must invest in upgrades as equipment and facilities become outdated and begin to fail. Menlo Park, California, for example, will need to invest $90.3 million in order to rehabilitate its municipal water system infrastructure between now and 2040. The investment will include funds to upgrade existing pipes, boost reliability and resilience of the system, and boost the system’s capacity, among other improvements.
The Delaware Aqueduct in New York, which supplies approximately half of New York City’s drinking water and has been leaking 15 million to 35 million gallons daily since the 1990s, needs a $1.2 billion fix.
Last week, the US Senate passed America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (AWIA), a comprehensive bill that makes critical investments in water infrastructure systems across the country. US Senator Richard Shelby, a member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, praised the passage of the bill, saying it is the most sweeping infrastructure package to be considered by this Congress.
AWIA authorizes major water infrastructure projects, including upgrading irrigation systems and dams, and increasing water storage. It requires that the EPA establish a voluntary stormwater infrastructure funding task force to develop recommendations to improve the funding and financing of stormwater infrastructure.
