BANGOR, Maine The last time you ate at a Bangor restaurant you probably didnt spend much time thinking about what was going down the drain in the kitchen. City officials have been thinking about it a lot and are beefing up efforts to ensure restaurants are doing all they can to prevent grease, fat and oil from wreaking havoc in the citys sewer system.

Every year, the Bangor Wastewater Treatment Plant collects about 58 tons of grease, coagulated fat and oil that has made its way through city sewers to the plant. That grease is shipped off to a landfill. This year, that work is expected to cost the city about $15,000, according to Brad Moore, plant superintendent.

If the plant didnt remove that waste, the grease would end up in the Penobscot River.

Some grease comes to the plant after it is dumped down the sinks of residents who have cooked their pound of bacon in the morning or browned a skillet of ground beef for tacos. The vast majority, however, comes from restaurants that arent in compliance with city codes that require them to use systems to prevent as much grease as possible from getting into the sewer system, Moore said.

When [the grease] cools off as it starts to get down into the sewer system, it starts coating the sides of the pipes and it actually can coat it to the point where it can block up the pipe, Moore said.

That means sending a machine that shoots a high-pressure water jet down the pipe to free up the clog and placing a vacuum truck at the other end to suck out the grease, all of which is an added expense to the city.

Were talking about two big, expensive pieces of equipment and four personnel dedicated to cleaning that one section of line, Moore said.

Crews are sent out to clear drains of congealed grease on a regular basis, he said, some of them repeatedly.

Most often, the clogged pipes can be found downstream of areas with a high concentration of restaurants, Moore said, so the city is putting its focus there.

Bangor wastewater treatment officials are implementing a new fats, oil and grease program aimed at dramatically reducing the amount of grease that ends up in the plant and in the citys roughly 160 miles of sewer lines.

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Bangor sewage treatment plant tells restaurants to get the grease out

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WECT) -

Cape Fear Public Utility Authority is mandating residents in the Heritage Park community to pay thousands of dollars for a new water and sewer connection.

Some residents in the Heritage Park area have had a problem with their septic tanks and wells but many are furious they're being required to get the new connection.

"It feels like crap. It feels like they're trying to take over what we own, what we've worked all of our lives for," said Heritage Park resident Pearlene Slade.

Slade said she does not have any issues with her septic tank and is upset she is being forced to pay for the new systems.

CFPUA officials estimate that each resident will have to pay an average of $10,000-$12,000 to set up plumbing, connect water lines, sewage and new customer fees. The project is a mandatory connection to ensure funding for infrastructure maintenance and construction.

Slade lives on Carl Seitter Drive and owns a house and another plot of land on that road, which means she is looking at a bill of more than $20,000 for the connection requirement.

"I'm barely making ends meet as it is," Slade commented. "I don't think its right I have to pay to run their lines. Their lines that they get the money from down the street that's none of my business, that's their business."

Slade cannot work and is on a fixed income. She said she doesn't know what she is going to do and may have to move out because she does not have the money.

CFPUA officials said the project is necessary even for residents who don't experience septic problems because the Heritage Park area has had septic tank issues for years. According to CFPUA officials, more than 67 septic tanks have failed since 2000 with expensive repairs to environmental impacts to surface water.

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CFPUA forces residents to pay thousands for water and sewage

Lowndes County supervisors have approved utility permits for Columbus Light and Water on several county roads that will allow the utility company to install a pressure sewer main connecting the New Hope School District to the city's sewer system.

Last year, the county school district and CL&W agreed to a memorandum of understanding that would have the school system pay for installation of a pipe that would transfer sewage into CL&W's sewer line. It would connect the pipe to the lagoon located behind New Hope Middle School. The wastewater in the lagoon would be filled and the land converted into another use for the district in the future.

The connection project will run along New Hope Road, Oswalt Road, Casey Lane and Yorkville Road East. CL&W and engineering firm Neel-Schaffer will put the project out to bid next month, according to JBHM architect Joey Henderson.

"The school district was struggling with the lagoon at New Hope because of continuous maintenance issues, keeping up with Department of Environmental Quality standards and the load that was on that facility, so we started helping them looking for options," Henderson said. "We looked at doing a treatment facility. We talked about possibility of expanding lagoon, which is frowned upon by DEQ, or we could get out of the sewer business. That's when we began to pursue Columbus Light & Water taking on the sewer for the district. When we ran the analyses, that was really the best option for the school."

Henderson said the lagoon or some form of lagoon has likely been on New Hope's campus since there has been a New Hope campus.

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Permits granted for New Hope sewer expansion

The Lewis and Clark County Commission is poised to give Wolf Creek residents a means to reduce the cost they will pay to be connected to the towns new wastewater system.

The commission will vote during its 9 a.m. meeting today in the City-County Building to consider allowing the towns residents to vote on establishing a resort area and implementing the sales tax on luxury goods that being a resort area allows. The tax would help with the construction and maintenance of the wastewater system.

Wolf Creeks resort area district would be similar to the one established in Craig, said Mona Jamison, the Helena attorney who helped write the Montana law on creating resort districts and has been assisting Wolf Creek residents through the process.

Ballots will be mailed out to Wolf Creek residents on Aug. 26 and counted on Sept. 16, said Audrey Dufrechou, the countys election supervisor.

There are 41 people currently registered to vote in Wolf Creek, but only 39 of them are active voters and will receive ballots. The two people who have not voted in a while and are inactive will need to request ballots, Dufrechou said.

Registration to vote closes Aug. 18, but there will late registration. Those who want to register to vote will need to come to the countys election office, in the City-County Building, to register.

The ordinance is proposing a 3 percent sales tax the maximum allowed under the state law on luxuries and would be in effect from April 1 through Nov. 15.

The tax would have a duration of 20 years, but would not take effect until April 1, 2015, if approved by a majority of the towns voters.

Delaying the implementation of the tax until next year allows businesses to prepare for the collections, Jamison said.

Collections by individual businesses are confidential and not disclosed to the public, unless ordered by the county commission, which is the governing body for the resort area.

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County set to vote on Wolf Creek resort area

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July 16th, 2014 10:30 am by Jeff Bobo

SURGOINSVILLE Time is running out for Surgoinsville's Main Street sewer customers to sign up for home installation at a discounted rate supplemented with grant funding.

Mayor Johnny Greer said there are still about 30 out of 90 Main Street customers who haven't yet signed up at City Hall for their sewer hook-up.

For those who sign up prior to July 31 the grant subsidized fee is $1,285, which includes everything materials, tank, equipment and installation labor.

The installation cost for those who miss the deadline could be closer to $6,500.

The sewer system hasn't been met with 100 percent approval form the Surgoinsville residents, and the Board of Mayor and Aldermen is anticipating there may be some residents who choose to boycott the sewer system altogether.

Building inspector Vince Pishner noted, however, that if the septic tank ever fails, residences that have available sewer service will not receive a septic repair permit from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.

"Right now for the $1,285 hookup fee the town is going to come in and put a new tank in your yard, with pump, and hook it up to your house with the grant," said Mayor Johnny Greer. "All that will be covered, and you won't have to pay a penny to have anything else done. If you don't hook it, and you go past the deadline, and the town has to come back, that deal is gone."

Greer said those who miss the deadline can still buy the tank from the town "at cost" but they'll have pay someone to install the tank and hook up the line, and then still pay the town's $1,285 hookup fee.

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Surgoinsville's Main Street residents have until July 31 to sign up for sewer hookup

Thats what James Alston of 215 Doris Ave. would like to know. Hes been waiting about four years to get an answer.

And after meeting with the City Council on Monday, it looks like hell be waiting a couple more.

Alston, 67, told the council that then-City Manager Tom Thanas told him in 2010 that the city would install storm sewers and curbing along his one-block neighborhood in 2015.

Alston said the 200 block of Doris Avenue lies at the bottom of a hill, where most of the rainwater collects during storms.

We still get a lot of torrential rains, Alston said. The water floods our driveways and comes up into our yards.

Alston said the neighborhood isnt even looking for sidewalks, just for curbing and gutters to collect rainwater on the edge of the street, which he said is crumbling away because of erosion. He said the S-curve, where Doris Avenue connects to Richards Street, is particularly bad.

But it doesnt look like any help will be coming next year, thanks to the citys funding problems.

Four years ago, the city still was participating in the Neighborhood Improvement Program, said Mayor Tom Giarrante.

Back then every district got $1.5 million, Giarrante said. Now they get zero.

The soonest Alston and his neighbors can expect any relief is 2016, when the street is scheduled for restoration through Motor Fuel Tax funds, said Jim Trizna, the citys director of public works.

Originally posted here:
Neighborhood gets bad news at Joliet City Council meeting

Perforated sewer pipe -- usually made of PVC in modern systems -- is embedded in gravel in an underground trench below the level of the septic tank. Your septic tank is the pretreatment part of your septic system, where bacteria digest the septic solids. The tank releases partially processed liquids to flow down a closed pipe to the septic field, or leach field. While the septic field is at a lower elevation than the tank, the field and the pipe inside it must be level. Permitting authorities in your county or city must sign off on your plans before you can install a septic system, and the plan for the project will show the elevation and layout of the trenches for the perforated pipe.

Dig out the soil in trenches of the depth, width and configuration required on your approved plan. Every plan is specific to the property where it will be built and is dependent of the size, shape, natural slope and soil composition of the property, as well as the speed at which water percolates through the soil and the size of the home the system serves. The floors of the trenches should be as close to level as possible so that wastewater distributes evenly throughout the system. Use a backhoe or similar digging equipment for this job.

Put 6 to 12 inches of gravel in the bottom of the trench. Choose gravel that is larger in diameter than the holes in the perforated pipe. Your municipality may have a specific requirement for the type of gravel you must use and the depth of gravel the perforated pipe must sit on.

Lay out the perforated pipe pieces on top of the gravel with the majority of the holes pointed downward and connect them with PVC self-priming glue. The pipe sections are made with coupling flanges on one end of each pipe, so the next pipe in line will slide inside of the one before. Smear PVC glue on the inside of the female flange and outside of the male end and slide them together quickly, before the glue has a chance to dry; make sure that the perforation holes are all pointed the same way. Cap any terminal ends of the pipes with glued PVC caps. Not all leach field plans have terminal ends on the pipes.

Place a level on the long runs of PVC and adjust the levelness of the pipe by wiggling and pushing high portions against the gravel until the bubble is in the middle of of the glass on the level. You can add gravel under stretches of pipe that are too low. You can also use a transit level or laser level to situate your pipes and some municipalities actually require that you do so.

Glue the incoming ends of the perforated pipe into the couplings on the nonperforated PVC pipe coming out of the system distribution box. A distribution box ensures that the wastewater distributes evenly into multiple runs of perforated pipe.

Place approximately 6 inches of gravel over the pipe, using care to avoid disturbing the pipe placement. Your municipality may require an inspection before you do this.

Cover the gravel with a single layer of geo-textile fabric to help keep soil from infiltrating the gravel, and fill the trench the rest of the way with soil.

Billie Jo Jannen is a politics and lifestyle columnist in rural San Diego County and a senior copy editor for Demand Media. Her writing and editing career spans 23 years, and she specializes in border and environmental affairs. Jannen's eclectic education includes engineering and horticulture, and she represents the Rural Economic Action League in regional economic development planning.

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How to Install a Perforated Sewer Drain Pipe | Home Guides ...

The posted speed limit along Seger Drive may suggest 45 mph, but actually traversing the gully-laden, patchwork of concrete in northeast Rapid City at such a speed is only for the brave and perhaps foolish.

"You may as well be driving across a field," 68-year-old Connie VanCamp, who lives at the Country Village mobile home park off Seger Drive, said last week. "It ruins our cars. Our suspensions are shot."

But a reprieve is in sightfor those wary of the road and its debilitating effects on their vehicles. The city is seeking bids for an estimated $6.85 million rebuild of Seger Drive between 143rd and Dyess avenues and hopes to have the project underway this fall.

Once completed, Seger Drive will have three lanes for traffic, a new curb and gutter, a 10-foot bike path on the north side of the road and street lights.

Public Works Director Terry Wolterstorff said the city has acquired enough right-of-way to construct a five-lane street but plans for such an expansion remain well into the future.

"We're going to be set up for all of that land to be developed and redeveloped," Wolterstorff said. "I wouldn't expect to see five lanes up there for a long, long time. The three lanes are going to be more than sufficient."

The rebuild was scheduled to start last year but the project stalled due to problems with acquiring land for public right-of-way to accommodate the reconstruction.

But higher-than-expected bids may throw another wrench in the works and stall the project yet again.

"Our other projects have been a little higher than we estimated, early on this spring," Wolterstorff said. "We will make the adjustments we need to make."

The rebuild will also install city water and sewer lines to the area, which is largely cluttered with junk yards aside from two trailer parks that rely on well water and sewage ponds.

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$6.8M Seger Drive rebuild slated to start this fall

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Corrales new Mayor Scott Kominiak has spent the months since his March election studying ways to make the cost of connecting to the controversial village sewer system more affordable for residents.

Kominiak and village staffers will present cost data and a proposed new sewer ordinance to the village council at a workshop at 2 p.m. on Thursday in the Council Chambers at 4322 Corrales Road. Public comment will be allowed.

Corrales currently has no sewer system and residents depend on septic systems. A liquids-only wastewater line from Wagners Lane south to the village limits at Cabezon was completed around 18 months ago but it is still not operational.

Kominiak said his plan is to shift the responsibility for installing the connection from the village to the individual property owner. Based on his research, allowing private property owners to install the connection infrastructure from their septic tank to the main sewer line would cost significantly less than if the village has to do the installation.

During the first several weeks since taking office, we examined all of the operational and legal aspects of the system, Kominiak said in an email. Our conclusion was that the village is committed to move forward with putting the system into service, but that we need to find a more sensible, practical way to do so.

Kominiak said the village would still provide pumps and filters and financial incentives for those who want to connect. His plan could reduce the cost of connection to between $3,000 and $9,000, depending on how much work has to be done.

In May last year, Councilors approved an ordinance establishing guidelines for connecting to the system but there were ongoing cost concerns. Souder Miller, the company that engineered the project, estimated the hookup cost at between $11,500 and $13,500 a price that some councilors said was too burdensome for residents.

The ordinance did not make it mandatory to connect, a situation that former Mayor Phil Gasteyer said put the village at risk of losing funding it received from the state Environment Department for the sewer project.

Councilors later approved using money from a gross receipts tax increase that took effect in January to pay off the $540,000 Environment Department loan. Village Administrator John Avila said the loan was paid off in March.

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Corrales looks at new sewer ordinance

OLD LYME The town and its beach communities are close to an agreement on a major project that would install sewers for the town's thousands of summer homes.

Small lots in each beach community are packed densely along the Long Island Sound shoreline, and most have inadequate septic systems.

Plans call for each of the town's beach communities to build its own sewer network, and the town would provide the main sewer line that would travel generally along Route 156 to East Lyme, said First Selectwoman Bonnie Reemsnyder.

From there, the line would link to existing lines in East Lyme and Waterford, and then to the regional sewage treatment plant in New London. Town officials have been told by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection that the New London facility can likely handle the additional sewage from Old Lyme.

"Each beach community would have their own project going within their association, and they would tie in to that main trunk line," Reemsnyder said. "This is a real collaboration between a lot of entities to accomplish resolving a lot of issues."

Old Lyme has five chartered beach communities that operate as independent taxing districts within the town. A few more beach communities, in addition to the five chartered associations, operate more like homeowners' associations and fall under the jurisdiction of the town's water pollution control authority.

Engineers are still working on cost estimates, but the project is expected to cost "tens of millions" to accomplish, Reemsnyder said. Engineers for the town and the beach communities are also working on construction timetable estimates that would lay out how to approach the project.

"It's a major undertaking," she said. "We're going to make this as painless as possible but with a project like this there will be some pain involved. Hopefully working together we can make it more cost efficient."

Old Lyme like many shoreline towns has a "sewer avoidance" ordinance that requires homeowners to have their septic systems maintained frequently. The sewer avoidance practice is common on the shoreline as small seasonal homes are only used sparingly throughout the year.

But Reemsnyder said since that ordinance was passed in the 1990s, the town has revisited the issue and has decided to pursue sewer lines so it can better handle wastewater management in the environmentally-sensitive shoreline area.

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Major Sewer Project Planned In Old Lyme