City of Jeffersonville, Indiana, Agrees to Upgrade Sewer Systems to Comply With Clean...

City of Jeffersonville, Indiana, Agrees to Upgrade Sewer Systems to Comply
With Clean Water Act

WASHINGTON, Sept. 17 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The city of Jeffersonville,
Ind., has agreed to make extensive improvements to its sewer systems that will
significantly reduce the city's longstanding sewage overflows into the Ohio
River in a comprehensive Clean Water Act settlement with federal and state
government, the Justice Department, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) and the state of Indiana announced today.

According to a consent decree filed today in federal court, the city is
required to develop and implement a comprehensive plan to reduce, and where
feasible, eliminate overflows into the Ohio River from its combined sewers by
calendar year 2020 or 2025, depending on Jeffersonville's financial health;
implement a plan with specific actions to improve the capacity, management,
operation, and maintenance of its sanitary sewer system to eliminate overflows
of untreated sewage; and eliminate all discharge points within its sanitary
sewer system.

According to the investigation, throughout the year, Jeffersonville's sewer
system is overwhelmed by rainfall, resulting in discharges of untreated sewage
and overflows of sewage combined with storm water into the Ohio River,
totaling millions of gallons each year. Under this settlement, the city will
improve its sewer system to minimize, and in many cases, eliminate those
overflows at a cost likely between $100 and $150 million.

"The federal Clean Water Act requires cities like Jeffersonville to eliminate
or reduce their sewage overflows into the nation's rivers, lakes and oceans,"
said John C. Cruden, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice
Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division. "This settlement
requires Jeffersonville to take steps to prevent sewage spills and overflows
into the Ohio River. We're pleased that the city has agreed to take these
important steps that will improve water quality in the Ohio River and protect
public health."

"EPA is committed to protecting health and the environment by bringing aging
sewer systems into compliance with the Clean Water Act," said Bharat Mathur,
EPA's Acting Region 5 Administrator. "We are pleased that the city of
Jeffersonville has committed to make improvements that will significantly
improve water quality in the Ohio River."

"This was not an easy settlement to reach, but the agreement is fair to all
sides. It has been very frustrating to all that wastewater flowed into the
Ohio River and nearby streams after heavy rains because of aging
infrastructure inadequate to the capacity," Indiana Attorney General Greg
Zoeller said. "Violations of the Clean Water Act were all too frequent. The
city is agreeing to uphold its environmental responsibilities, and ultimately
the public - those who live and work near the Ohio River - will in the long
run benefit from these improvements."

"IDEM partnered with U.S. EPA, the U.S. Attorney's office, the Indiana
Attorney General's office and the city of Jeffersonville to reach an effective
agreement for eliminating pollutants from Jeffersonville's combined sewer
system," said Commissioner Thomas Easterly of the Indiana Department of
Environmental Management. "That agreement includes green infrastructure
provisions, such as installing pervious pavers and a rain garden along the
river front, which will serve as a model for other cities around the nation.
This agreement will improve the quality of life for their community and others
downstream."

In addition to improving its sewer system, Jeffersonville has agreed to pay
the United States a civil penalty of $49,500 and the state of Indiana a civil
penalty of $8,250, provided that Jeffersonville implements two environmental
projects identified in the settlement that are designed to improve water
quality in the city at a cost of more than $248,000.

The city of Jeffersonville is located in Clark County, Ind., on the north bank
of the Ohio River, directly across the river from Louisville, Ky.
Jeffersonville has a population of approximately 30,000. Of Jeffersonville's
total sewered area, 15 percent is served by combined sewers while 85 percent
is served by separate sanitary sewers. The combined sewers are located in the
older, downtown portion of Jeffersonville and lack sufficient capacity to
transport all of the combined sewage that it receives to Jeffersonville's
wastewater treatment plant during rainfall events. As a result, Jeffersonville
commonly discharges the combination of sewage and storm water through one or
more of its 13 combined sewer overflow outfalls that discharge to the Ohio
River.

In the past, the United States has reached similar agreements with numerous
municipal entities across the country including Nashville, Tenn.; Mobile,
Ala.; Knoxville, Tenn.; Toledo, Ohio; Hamilton County (Cincinnati), Ohio;
Louisville, Ky.; Indianapolis, Ind.; Fort Wayne, Ind.; Ironton, Ohio; and the
Sanitation District No. 1 in northern Kentucky.

The consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of
Indiana, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the
federal court. A copy of the consent decree is available on the Justice
Department Web site at http://www.usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html.

SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs, +1-202-514-2007; EPA,
+1-312-353-6218; IN AG, +1-317-233-3970; or IDEM, +1-317-232-8512