CHICAGO — The state of Ohio, the U.S. Department of Justice and EPA announced a Clean Water Act settlement has been made with the city of Lima, Ohio, to resolve claims of untreated sewer discharges released during wet weather into the Ottawa River, according to a press release.
The proposed consent decree will require Lima to make considerable structural improvements to help control sewage overflows and eliminate overflows from the sanitary sewer system, stated the release.
The release reported that the consent decree requires Lima to significantly increase the capacity of its wastewater treatment — from 30 million gallons per day to 70 million gallons a day.
Lima will reduce sewer overflows by partially or fully separating sewer lines and stormwater, installing a pump system and by building a 13-million-gallon storage tank, continued the release.
Overall improvements will cost around $147 million, and Lima will also pay $49,000 as a civil penalty, split evenly to Ohio and the U.S., noted the release.
Read the entire release here.
