Bucks sewer authority agrees to pay $450,000 penalty over raw sewage overflows

The Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority has agreed to pay a $450,000 penalty and make substantial upgrades to its system because of more than 250 overflows of raw sewage since 2014, according to federal and state officials.

As part of that process, the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a civil suit this week under the Clean Water Act so a federal court can officially settle the matter.

But the penalty is really the result of an agreement between the authority and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to address long-standing sewage overflow issues.

According to the federal complaint, the violations stemmed from sanitary sewer overflows, mostly from manholes. The complaint also alleges operation and maintenance violations.

The authority owns and operates hundreds of miles of sewer pipes, connected at manholes.

During storms, overflow sewage bubbling out of manholes can make its way onto the streets, into residential basements, and into waterways that ultimately feed into the Delaware River. Raw sewage can contain bacteria, pathogens, industrial waste, oil, and pesticides.

The court document says that, since 2014, areas that the authority serves have reported the sewage overflows, with more than 100 occurring in Plumstead Township. But multiple overflows have occurred in Bensalem, Richland, Doylestown Borough, Middletown, Upper Dublin, and New Hope/Solebury.

A properly functioning sanitary sewer system collects and transports sewage to a treatment facility. In this case, the authority ultimately discharges treated water into the Delaware River. Overflows — in which untreated water can get into the river — occur for reasons including big storms, improper design, equipment failure, poor management, improper operation and maintenance, and vandalism, the complaint states.

The Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority issued a statement saying, “it is important to note that BCSWA did not wait until the (agreement) was finalized before taking action in Plumstead Township. Rather, BCSWA has been actively addressing overflow issues in Plumstead Township for a number of years, specifically with respect to the impact that private properties in the area have had on sanitary sewer overflows.”

The authority said it has already replaced 75 lateral pipes on private property, “despite having no ownership interest in these laterals. “

The authority has agreed to evaluate its collection system and “adopt extensive measures to ensure compliance with the federal and state requirements,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office statement. Those measures will include better monitoring of flow, identifying system limitations, addressing illegal sewer connections, and improving overall operation and maintenance.

“It’s no secret that many communities in the United States are grappling with issues caused by aging infrastructure, especially here on the East Coast which employs some of the oldest systems,” U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier said in the statement. “However, there are ways to manage and address these issues in order to maintain the safety of our environment and property. … We thank the Authority for working cooperatively to reach this resolution that will surely improve public health and environmental quality.”

EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz noted that “sewer overflows can contaminate our waters, causing serious water quality problems, and back up into homes, causing property damage and threatening public health.”

DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell called the settlement “a coordinated and cooperative effort.”

Under the settlement the Bucks authority did not admit liability for violations alleged in the suit filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The suit is subject to a 30-day public comment period and court approval.