Officials floating water review
After wastewater failures in Baltimore, task force sought to probe governance structure
Amid serious maintenance problems at Baltimore’s two wastewater treatment plants and persistent water billing and infrastructure issues, Maryland officials are proposing a task force that would look into a new governance structure for the area’s water and wastewater system.
The task force could recommend the creation of a regional water authority to manage the water and sewer infrastructure that serves Baltimore City and Baltimore County, much of which the city controls under the current arrangement. A 2021 study jointly commissioned by the city and the county suggested just that.
The idea has been tossed around for years, though pollution problems at the two city-run wastewater plants — Back River in Dundalk and Patapsco in Wagners Point — might have added fresh urgency to the conversation. The city’s problems with accurate drinking water billing and aging infrastructure also have contributed to the debate.
Under a General Assembly bill unveiled Tuesday by city and county Democratic legislators, the task force would make its recommendation by January 2024. It has the support of Maryland’s speaker of the House and Senate president.
During a news conference Tuesday, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr., a Democrat, said the current water and wastewater arrangement “does not reflect the incredible growth we’ve seen across our region since it was put in place nearly a half century ago.”
Since then, the county’s population growth has far outstripped the city’s. When the water system was established in the 19th century, it served a city of roughly 250,000, but the system now serves 1.8 million
customers throughout the region, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said.
“We have been proud to diligently serve as the Baltimore region’s water supplier for all of these years,” the Democratic mayor said Tuesday. “But, we are at a pivotal moment in history, where we need to determine what the future needs of our region will look like, and how to best address those needs through the utility.”
Under the new bill, Scott would have the power to choose the most members of the task force — five out of 13. Olszewski, who has called for the county to “have a seat at the table” on water and wastewater issues, would pick three.
Democratic Gov. Wes Moore would select two members, and Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson and Speaker of the House Adrienne A. Jones, also Democrats, would each select one member of their respective chambers to join.
Finally, the chair of the Baltimore Metropolitan Council would appoint one task force member representing either Anne Arundel, Carroll, Howard or Harford County.
For a recommendation to succeed, it would need 10 votes out of 13, according to a draft of the legislation provided by Olszewski’s office. A representative from Baltimore City will chair the task force.
The bill was proposed by Sen. Jill P. Carter and Del. Stephanie Smith of Baltimore and Sen. Charles Sydnor and Del. Eric Ebersole of Baltimore County, all of whom are Democrats.
Though the task force is a good step, its proposed makeup is concerning, said Angela Haren, a senior attorney at the Chesapeake Legal Alliance, which is representing local nonprofit Blue Water Baltimore in its ongoing lawsuit over the city’s wastewater challenges.
Haren said all of the impacted counties in the metro area ought to have equal membership on the task force, and key agencies like the Maryland Department of the Environment, the Environmental Protection Agency and the attorney general’s office should have voting members too.
In addition, impacted community groups should get a seat at the table, she said. The task force also should bring in wastewater professionals, and officials who run other regional water authorities, like the one in Washington, D.C.
“Creating a task force is a great first step,” Haren said. “I think we need a lot more voices at the table to be successful.”
The draft of the bill does call for the task force to consult with the Maryland Department of the Environment and the Maryland Environmental Service, and calls for the city and county to jointly procure a consultant to staff the task force.
The bill already has the support of MDE, said newly named Secretary Serena McIlwain, who added that her department is committed to making Baltimore’s beleaguered wastewater treatment plants compliant and resilient.
“We are committed to assisting Back River and Patapsco communities with funding, which is really really critical to this partnership,” she said. “We’re committed to funding for both completion of the capital projects and facility and equipment upgrades.”
Under an agreement last updated in the 1970s, Baltimore’s Department of Public Works runs the two wastewater plants, which are the largest in the state, though the Back River plant is located in Baltimore County, and both accept wastewater from surrounding counties. Baltimore County pays a share of the costs associated with the plants.
The county is responsible for the sewer infrastructure inside its boundaries, including
sewage pumping stations. The county also handles customer service and billing for wastewater service for county residents.
Under the 50-year-old agreement, the city controls the bulk of the drinking water infrastructure: including three reservoirs located in the county and three water treatment plants. The city bills all the drinking water customers and sets the rates.
Last year, failures of the city’s aging drinking water infrastructure caused E. coli to contaminate faucets in West Baltimore, prompting a weeklong boil water advisory for thousands of affected customers extending into Baltimore County.
The city Department of Public Works has long been plagued by water billing system problems. In 2020, a joint report from the city’s and Baltimore County’s inspectors general found that the city and county have lost millions of dollars in water and sewer revenue as a result of tens of thousands of digital water meters that are not fully functional.
The report also found more than 8,000 open “tickets” for unresolved problems with county water accounts. So far, the city has reported some progress on reducing the backlog and the number of dysfunctional meters.
The problems with the city’s wastewater treatment plants came to light in 2021, after nonprofit Blue Water Baltimore found water samples near the plants with concern
ing bacteria levels. State inspectors went into each of the plants and found concerning environmental violations. They documented myriad problems with clogged and broken equipment, as well as severe staffing shortages.
By last spring, then-Secretary of the Environment Ben Grumbles deemed the Back River plant on the brink of “catastrophic failure” and ordered a team of wastewater experts from the Maryland Environmental Service to step in.
The city initially protested the state’s intervention, calling it politically motivated and excessive. But, shortly after a blistering report from the Environmental Service that laid out the plant’s problems and partially blamed top city officials for its dysfunction, the city reached an agreement with the state.
That agreement has been extended twice, and the latest expires April 30.
The state has not stepped in at the Patapsco plant, though that plant remains out of compliance with its pollution limits, and advocacy groups have called for state intervention repeatedly.
But the state has sued the city over its management of both plants, and officials say negotiations are underway for a consent decree that would regulate the facilities.
“Creating a task force is a great first step. I think we need a lot more voices at the table to be successful.” — Angela Haren, a senior attorney at the Chesapeake Legal Alliance