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Palmetto’s sewage capacity to go way up

By BEN NELMS
bnelms@TheCitizenNews.com

The Palmetto City Council approved an agreement Monday that will expand the city’s sewage capability to nearly double its current daily capacity.

The vote activates the Wastewater Conveyance and Transport System Development Agreement between Palmetto and Fulton County. The project will be funded by the city’s $9 million bond issue and will increase the sewer capacity to one million gallons per day, a significant increase over the current 600,000 gallons per day. The agreement anticipates the project to be completed in spring 2006.

Palmetto’s portion of the project will consist of construction of a new main pumping station on the site of Palmetto’s wastewater treatment plant off Carlton Road and construction of approximately 23,300 feet of sewer force main from the Palmetto pump station to a proposed force main terminus manhole located near Ono Road and Hobgood Road. Fulton County’s portion of the project includes construction of approximately 3,500 feet of gravity sewer from that location to the new pump station to be constructed near Hobgood Road and Bear Creek along with construction of the Hobgood Road pump station. The county will also build approximately 10,900 feet of sewer main from the Hobgood pump station to a proposed main terminus near Rivertown Road and Cedar Grove Road and construct approximately 10,700 feet of sewer main from Rivertown Road to the Line Creek Interceptor near McClure Road.

The agreement with Fulton County represents a portion of a $9 million bond issue to upgrade the sewer system. In total, the bond issue includes increasing Palmetto’s share in expanding the county plant, running new sewer lines to the plant and replacing some existing lines in the city. The council decided to tie into the county system because it would significantly increase wastewater treatment capabilities and would be less costly than spending the estimated $12-15 million to establish a sewer treatment plant inside city limits. Though customers will see a future increase in rates, those prices will be significantly less than the alternative of having the city construct its own system.

“It’s a great saving for Palmetto and it’s quite a saving for utility customers,” said Mayor Clark Boddie. “There will be a slight increase, but nothing like what there would have been if we did it the other way.”

Palmetto council members voted Feb. 7 to increase utility deposits and water and sewer tap fees for new customers to help offset the cost of the $9 million bond issue.

The city’s upcoming sewer system upgrade results from a consent order by Georgia Environmental Protection Division requiring Palmetto to complete the necessary infrastructure for pumping wastewater to the county’s system.