To the Citizens of Hamilton County:
The Hamilton County Water Wastewater Treatment Authority (WWTA) is composed of a twelve-member volunteer board that provides oversight to the work performed by the professional staff members, consultants, and contractors providing sewer service to citizens of Hamilton County. Our service area includes the unincorporated area of the County, East Ridge, Lakesite, Lookout Mountain, Red Bank, Ridgeside, Signal Mountain, and Soddy Daisy. Five of the members are nominated by the Hamilton County Mayor and approved by the County Commission, while the others are appointed by the municipalities they represent. Those members who do not represent a municipality represent a specific industry, by law, to provide expertise needed to guide sewer infrastructure oversight in Hamilton County. WWTA Board Members are elected officials, engineers, city managers, business owners, building officials and, as a whole, are community servants. The WWTA was formed in 1993 to help support economic development in the unincorporated areas of Hamilton County. Over time, municipalities joined the WWTA, seeking help in meeting the needs of their aging sewer infrastructure. Historically, the WWTA Board has not had the political or financial support to make changes that would put infrastructure in place to proactively meet Hamilton County’s needs. During the Great Recession, the Board managed maintenance of the sewer system in a manner that was intended to provide necessary repairs and maintenance while at the same time keeping the costs to our customers as low as possible. In 2017, the Hamilton County Commission voted to support the WWTA with $45 million for a new water wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) to be located in the fastest growing area of the region - North Hamilton County. The treatment plant is needed as a proactive measure for creating infrastructure to handle the growth by providing much needed sewer capacity BEFORE the growth occurs and to avoid moratoriums on construction, which are virtually guaranteed if WWTA does not expand its capacity. The first task required to locate a treatment plant was to find the best place to build it. To do so, WWTA contracted with the highly respected engineering firm S&ME to study potential sites to find ones that met the technical requirements for a treatment plant in a cost-effective manner. The one location that fulfilled the requirements for the plant in the most cost-effective manner with the fewest impacts on County residents was recently rejected by the Hamilton County Commission, which declined to issue a necessary permit for the plant. Over the past few months, the community has been discussing the proposed location for the plant. If you look in the upper left-hand corner of the above photo, you’ll see the proposed site recommended for the treatment plant. The photo was taken after the heavy rains recently experienced in the area. The location for the plant is located on the west side---in the dry away from flood plain. Those who spoke against the proposed location demanded that the plant be placed further west or north – or anywhere else, so long it is away from them. Using any of the alternative sites would add $16 to $21 million dollars to the cost of the plant, which would be paid for by ALL of our customers throughout Hamilton County. The WWTA Board is not currently in favor of siting the plant on the alternative sites because of the additional costs plus some substantial technical challenges the alternative sites would bring with them. We are dedicated to meeting the needs of our customers at the lowest price possible. We believe it’s time to set the record straight - you deserve to know the facts. Those who want to push the WWTP and growth away from themselves have been using misinformation to sway public opinion against selection of this site, which is by far the most sensible location for a plant. We believe it’s time to set the record straight - you deserve to know the facts.
FACT:
The new sewer treatment plant would be 1/15th the size of the Moccasin Bend Plant. It would be monitored 24/7 by sewer professionals who would be able to address any issue before becoming an overflow. It would use the latest technologies to protect the environment and neighboring residents from odors and other health concerns. Of the 154 acres that would be purchased at Mahan Gap, less than one third would be used, leaving plenty of buffer area between the plant and neighboring properties.
FACT:
Treated water will not be discharged to Savannah Bay. The plant will be located near the bay, because that is where water flows naturally, thus allowing the use of pumps and force mains to be minimized and potentially eliminated. The treated water will be discharged into the Tennessee River near the Sequoyah Nuclear Plant. Pumps will be required to move the water from the plant to the River, but they will be pumping clean, treated water from the plant.
FACT:
Using geographic information system (GIS) tools, WWTA considered all feasible property north of Mahan Gap Road, using more than 40 different criteria, including topography, environmental impacts, archaeological issues, and other technical matters. WWTA and its consultants evaluated a list of a dozen or so properties that S&ME recommended based on the overall review. Each of the proposed sites was evaluated carefully based on a list of relevant criteria and WWTA determined that the Mahan Gap Road property was by far the most suitable site.
FACT:
The search included property near the landfill. This area is well suited for a landfill, but it would be more costly construct a WWTP near the landfill than at the recommended site.
FACT:
The WWTA considered property south of Enterprise South as an alternate site for the WWTP. This area is serviced by Moccasin Bend, so it is not an option. In addition, the property’s infrastructure is not large enough to support current and future needs.
FACT:
The WWTA informed the County Commission within two weeks of receiving a recommendation that the property at 7800 Mahan Gap Road had been selected as the best site as determined in consultation with our professional engineering consultant S&ME.
FACT:
The WWTA negotiated the price of the property with a private landowner to get the best possible price for the land to help minimize the ultimate impact on rate payers. If negotiations had occurred in public, the property may have been much more expensive.
FACT:
The WWTA informed the County Commission at the last meeting that WWTA is ready, willing and able to purchase the property of the nine property owners whose land adjoins the Mahan Gap Road site to provide a bigger buffer area allow property owners the option of not living next to the treatment plant. Much of the property purchased would be resold, at a later date, when buyers would be fully aware of what would be “in their back yard.”
FACT:
The proposed purchase price of the property is $2.6 million. The appraised property value is $2.8 million, performed by an independent appraiser.
FACT:
TVA established a restricted conveyance when they sold the property that ultimately became 7800 Mahan Gap Road in 1947. TVA lifted portions of those restrictions decades ago. The remaining restrictions are the same as the restrictions on any other property located near the Tennessee River and would not affect the siting of the plant. The property has a clean title and no deed issues.
FACT:
The number of new sewer taps for homeowners wishing to join the WWTA’s system doubled from October to November. This is a trend that has continued over the last few years with growth occurring at an accelerated rate in North Hamilton County. It is a trend that cannot continue without additional sewer infrastructure support. Without adequate capacity, moratoriums on growth will be imposed to avoid overtaxing the existing sewer infrastructure.
FACT:
The County Commission has asked WWTA about statements that have been made that there are four offers to purchase the WWTA. To date, the WWTA has still not received any official offers. The WWTA Board would have to approve a purchase and no party has contacted the Board to make any purchase offers or inquiries. It is doubtful that WWTA would approve a sale or even be able to do so legally.
FACT:
Like certain areas within the WWTA sewer collection system, the City of Chattanooga’s collection system can be overwhelmed during certain rain events, resulting in overflows from the system. Each overflow is reported to TDEC. Overflows are a serious issue and must (by law) be addressed. Overflows often indicate capacity limitations, which can be addressed by a number of actions, including installing larger pipes, adding pumps, building storage tanks, and treatment plants and by reducing the amount of rainwater and groundwater (inflow and infiltration, or I/I) that enters the system. A combination of these measures is needed to fully address overflows and many are currently being employed by the WWTA and the City, but much more is needed to fully address the problem. As discussed, WWTA will soon agree to implement a comprehensive, sustainable solution to overflows and capacity limitations under a consent decree with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC). The proposed WWTP is part of that comprehensive plan.
FACT:
The Snow Hill pump station, located near the Champions Club at Hampton Creek, overflowed several times in 2018 after both 70 horsepower (hp) electric pumps were damaged by foreign metal object or objects. The WWTA replaced the electric pumps with an 85 hp pump and a 115 hp pump. The pumps had to be ordered separately to ensure that both pumps would fit in the limited space available. Pumps like these must be manufactured after they are ordered and that takes time. WWTA completed the Snow Hill repairs the first week of January 2019. The Snow Hill pump station has not overflowed since October 28, 2018.
FACT:
The temporary diesel pumps used to operate the Snow Hill pump station during the series of repairs are noisy and were used because they were the best pumps that could be found at the time. The WWTA has purchased bypass pumps to keep at the Snow Hill pump station, which will be available in the event of any future breakdowns or rainy periods. The new backup pumps are quieter than the rented bypass pumps.
FACT:
Maintenance and repair work on the collection systems in East Ridge and the other WWTA service areas continues each and every day and has been conducted for years. The WWTA is not waiting for the consent decree to be finalized, but is performing what will be required under the decree already. The use of a WWTP in East Ridge has been considered, but was not the most technically nor economically feasible option.
FACT:
WWTA is in negotiations with the EPA, DOJ and TDEC to agree on the terms of a consent decree that will require that WWTA implement a comprehensive, sustainable remedy to overflows and capacity limitations in the sewer system under a consent decree. The estimated cost of performing the obligations under the consent decree is $245 million. It should be noted that the projected costs will not be diminished if a treatment plant is not built. Instead, the money that will be “saved,” will be used to build storage tanks and to pay the City of Chattanooga to treat the WWTA sewage at the Moccasin Bend treatment plant, and it is likely that over time the costs will increase beyond the projections that include building a treatment plant. In addition to cost considerations, the consent decree contains strict “capacity assurance” language that is likely to trigger moratoriums on development in Ooltewah and other areas if treatment capacity is not increased by building a treatment plant.
FACT:
The pending consent decree is for the settlement by WWTA of an EPA and TDEC enforcement action. If WWTA chooses not to settle, the Department of Justice will file suit and ultimately force a settlement, the terms of which are likely to be less favorable than a negotiated agreement. Fines would be imposed by the court, based on the statutory penalty of between $37,500 and $53,484 per violation per day for the past five years or more and each overflow is considered to be a violation! Although the full penalty would not be likely to be imposed, there is a substantial risk that a penalty imposed by the court would be much higher than the negotiated penalty.
WHAT IS NEXT FOR WWTA?
In addition to continuing negotiations for the terms of a consent decree, because of the recent vote, the WWTA must now work on ‘Plan B’, which involves siting storage tanks in strategic locations to provide needed capacity in the sewer system. In the interest of transparency and community outreach as requested by the Commission and the community, we are reaching out to Commissioners for feedback regarding acceptable locations within their districts for storage tanks. While we are concerned about pumping raw sewer across the County for up to 40 miles to reach the Moccasin Bend Treatment Plant, the WWTA will have no other choice if we are to support growth in the North Ooltewah/Birchwood/Harrison area and are unable to build the proposed treatment plant. We are writing to let you know the decisions that are being made will add substantial costs that will have the potential to increase the sewer rates by more than we are already planning because of consent decree obligations. The WWTA Board is adamantly against the additional rate increases, but will have no choice if WWTA incurs these additional costs. It has been noted that there are restrictions placed by TVA on the Mahan Gap Road site that are unusually cumbersome. They want you to think that pursuing this land would lead to multiple lawsuits. This is not true. WWTA has researched this issue and found those restrictions were lifted decades ago. Scare tactics like this are intentionally misleading and should not be a part of this County-wide conversation; nor should personal attacks against hard-working public servants. The group of professionals that are addressing these critical issues are involved at every level of the decision making process and the maintenance of the sanitary sewer infrastructure of Hamilton County. They are community minded individuals who perform their jobs with pride and deserve the same decent treatment that everyone reading this deserves. Over the coming days and months, we will continue to provide factual information to the community professionally and without bias. We look forward to addressing any additional concerns the commission may have. We are looking to you to encourage more questions, engagement in truthful conversation and expectations for more from those making decisions about our shared futures. Respectfully,
The Hamilton County Water Wastewater Treatment Authority Board of Directors & Executive Team