Sean C. Morgan
This month the City Council will consider a program that will allow anyone with deteriorating sewer laterals to replace them with financial assistance from the city.
During four phases of sewer repair and rehabilitation projects since 2005, the city has replaced some 30 percent of the lateral lines in the city to reduce inflow and infiltration (I&I).
Lateral lines are the pipes that run between a building and the main sewer line. Inflow and infiltration is storm water that enters the sewer system through deteriorated pipes or cross connections to the sewer system.
Before the city started the projects, the Wastewater Treatment Plant was capable of handling flows of up to about 7 million gallons per day. The city used around 1 million gallons of water per day. During the heaviest rains, the plant could receive up to 22.2 million gallons per day.
When it received flows so high, it would have to bypass the excess untreated but highly diluted wastewater into the South Santiam River.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality requires the city to treat all of the wastewater, and the city had been working under an agreement with the DEQ to eliminate the bypasses. The agreement, which ended in 2010, required the city to reduce I&I. In exchange, the DEQ would not fine the city for bypassing if the city remained busy fixing the system.
After four I&I reduction projects, the city has reduced maximum flows to 11.5 million gallons per day, leaving the city to deal with another 4.5 million gallons per day. City officials are considering Treatment Plant upgrades to handle the flows.
In the meantime, many laterals are still contributing to I&I.
The maintenance and repair of lateral lines are the responsibilities of property owners, but the city included the repair of laterals in its projects for about 30 percent of properties in the city. The projects were funded by low-interest and no-interest loans, and the city raises funds to pay back the loans through the sewer rate.
Public Works Director Mike Adams is proposing to offer the same opportunity to the city’s remaining residents. He outlined the program to the Public Works Committee on Feb. 4.
The concept is modeled after Albany’s, he said, and it allows other ratepayers to tangibly receive the benefit like the first 30 percent.
Not all 70 percent of the remaining laterals need replacement, he said.
The city can compel property owners who do have laterals in need of repair to fix them within 45 days, Adams said. This program offers a carrot to encourage them to repair the lines. It would reimburse property owners for the materials and labor to replace the line up to a limit that has not been set yet. Adams estimates an approximate average cost of $30 per foot for line replacement.
Property owners would need to fill out an application to receive the funds, he said. City funds won’t cover permit fees or landscaping costs. It also won’t pay for the labor of property owners who choose to do the work themselves.
Anyone who was not part of the four project phases would be eligible for the funding, he said. The city may identify laterals that need replacement, and property owners could access this program, or property owners could initiate the process.
“We’re going to have to be strategic in that regard,” Adams said, and the city will want to focus on the areas where the main problems exist.
The program would be covered through the sewer rates, he said. Specifically, he has included $200,000 per year in the city’s Wastewater Depreciation Fund the past two years for this program. The money has been carried forward annually, and he will propose it again for the 2014-15 budget in the spring.
“If the money runs out, there’s no guarantee we’ll keep it going,” he said.
Councilor Craig Fentiman, a member of the Public Works Committee, said he believes the proposal is fair, said and it will help reduce more I&I. He suggested moving the proposal to the City Council at its regular meeting on Feb. 25.