Fulton likely to face big fine for sewage spills

Fulton County has spilled nearly 1 million gallons of raw sewage into the Chattahoochee River since January — despite a 2005 order to fix the problems.

During a heavy rain in early January, Fulton leaked 650,000 gallons of raw sewage into the river. Then on March 1, during a snowstorm, another 331,000 gallons polluted the Chattahoochee.

Enlarge this image

File photo

Recent headlines:

[an error occurred while processing this directive]    • Metro and state news

“I’m like the rest of the public,” said Dan Brown, superintendent of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area. “I canoe in the river, and I don’t like the thought of being in a river that has raw sewage that spills into it.”

In the wake of the recent spills, the state EPD is drafting a new order against Fulton that is likely to carry a hefty fine. Since 1999, EPD records show, Fulton has racked up at least $687,676 in fines for system-wide sewage spills. The pending fine for this year’s spills could easily be higher than the 2005 fine of $62,250. That’s because more sewage overflowed.

Under the 2005 EPD order, Fulton was required to expand capacity at a sewage treatment plant, upgrade pumping stations and fix leaky pipes. The plan was to halt the overflows into Vickery Creek Park and Roswell’s Riverside Park along Azalea Drive.

According to Fulton and the EPD, the project should be complete by the end of 2012. Two deadlines loom: next January, Fulton is to complete an upgrade to the pumping station on Riverside Road and, by December 2012, expand the Big Creek sewage treatment plant.

The EPD’s Marzieh Shahbazaz said Fulton is on schedule and focused on resolving the spills.

But even with all the renovations, the problem will not be solved completely, said Brown, who met earlier this month with Fulton officials to find out why the spills happened — and what the county is doing to fix its system.

His analysis revealed that the upgrades under way will not solve the problem 100 percent. To do that, Fulton County would have to spend millions more, replacing a 60-inch pipe that collects sewage from 650 miles of pipeline running through Roswell, Alpharetta and parts of Johns Creek.

Heavy rain from a tropical storm or a similar weather event could still cause sewage overflows, Brown said.

Under federal law, Brown has the authority to pursue payment for damages to the river and surrounding park, but he said he came away from the meeting convinced the problem is a high priority for Fulton, and that officials seem to be doing all they can to prevent future spills.

The problem area is upstream from the points where Cobb County and the city of Atlanta withdraw water.

When it rains, the county is on red alert to ensure the pumping stations, which move the sewage through the pipe, are fully operational. Staff patrol the area around-the-clock, looking for spills, Fulton County Public Works Department Director Angela Parker said.

“We’ve worked really hard and made some good progress, and to have two rain events so close together … It’s disheartening,” Parker said.