Tennessee found more than half of systems that dispose of wastewater by dripping it into large fields are not compliant with their permits.
Image: A state inspector photographed ponded water covered in algae blooms at the Ridgewater wastewater treatment site in Mount Juliet, Tenn. on Jan. 8, 2024. Image Credit: Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation
***Note from The Tennessee Conservative – this article posted here for informational purposes only.
By: Cassandra Stephenson [Tennessee Lookout -CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] –
After faulty systems allowed polluted wastewater to form algae-coated pools near residential homes and leach into streams in Wilson County, Sen. Mark Pody spent nearly two years drafting legislation directing state regulators to strengthen rules and increase accountability for the developers and utilities responsible for their installation and upkeep.
Lawmakers last week narrowly advanced Pody’s bill from a key committee after senators and the director of an environmental law center warned that the bill’s requirements may not be robust enough and broad language could undermine utility districts that are functioning well.
“This is not a perfect piece of legislation … the question I have though, is who’s got something better … or do we just keep letting our systems in Tennessee have sewage in the yards and nothing being done?” Pody asked members of the Senate Energy, Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on Feb. 11.
The bill focuses on decentralized wastewater systems often installed in rural areas that lack existing sewer infrastructure.
In 2024, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation found that more than half of the functioning drip dispersal systems in the state — which filter sewage and then disperse it over large “drip fields” to use soil as a final natural filter — did not comply with their permits.
One of the most noted problems: Overloading soil with wastewater, causing polluted water to pool and run off into nearby waterways and other land, according to the department’s report.
Lawsuit, state report identify issues with drip systems, wastewater runoff
Issues with drip systems have been prominent in Pody’s district, but also affect other areas of the state. The 2024 report shows a concentration of drip dispersal wastewater treatment systems in Middle Tennessee, but they are also common in East Tennessee in counties surrounding Knoxville.
Problems have also been flagged in a recent lawsuit.
Environmental groups filed a lawsuit against Wilson County’s wastewater authority and the operator of a Mount Juliet treatment system in October, accusing both of violating the Clean Water Act by allowing wastewater to discharge into a tributary of the Cumberland River.
The county wastewater authority contended that high levels of E. coli found in samples collected from the site may be coming from other sources, and a nearby trench was meant for storm water drainage, not wastewater.
That lawsuit is ongoing.
Pody said a lack of oversight led to systems being incorrectly installed or maintained by third parties hired by utility companies. Systems were sometimes hooked up to more homes than they were approved to handle, or drip fields were much smaller than their permits indicated.
Bill to require new rules, developer-funded safety net for failing systems
The bill would require TDEC to create a set of rules for these wastewater systems by July 31, 2027. It would also bar the systems from operating until construction is complete. A developer would be required to submit their treatment system plan to the local utility, which could decide to accept or reject ownership and operating responsibility for the system. If the local utility rejected the system, the developer could contract with another utility, so long as the utility is fully compliant with state and federal standards and has no outstanding fines.
“Unfortunately, we have several operators that have multiple fines and multiple problems that have not been addressed, and they’re still getting new permits,” Pody said. “That, I believe, has to stop.”
Developers would be required to secure a two-year bond for the full replacement cost of the system in case of failure.
An amendment drafted by Sen. Shane Reeves, a Rutherford County Republican, and approved by the committee would require wastewater systems to carry a 50% bond on the cost of the system for years three through 10.
Reeves, the committee chair, said he was disappointed that utility systems and homebuilders “were not able to come to a true compromise” on the bill. His concern centers on the homeowners who would otherwise be left to foot the cost of replacement for failed systems.
Lingering concerns
George Nolan, director of the Southern Environmental Law Center’s Tennessee branch, told lawmakers that limiting the bond requirement for the full replacement cost to two years would not provide any “real protection,” because systems sometimes take 10 to 15 years to fail.
Pody said bond companies do not offer such a bond for that period of time.
Nolan also cautioned against “broad” wording that could open up avenues for treatment systems called “package plants” that feed wastewater into a container and then discharge it into streams. These types of waste systems are not currently permitted in Tennessee.
Pody said this bill does not ask to allow package plants, but charges state regulators to come up with rules that “make sense for everything.”
Nolan said the bill would “allow third-party sewage system operators to invade the service territories of utility districts who are doing a good job,” citing the consolidated utility district for Rutherford County as an example of a model district.
Pody similarly commended Rutherford County for their management of wastewater systems, and said TDEC should refer to such examples when shaping new rules.
If the department does not set rules to the legislature’s liking, changes can be made later on, he said.
“Right now, we have nothing,” Pody said. “At least let’s get a starting point so bad systems don’t go in … this is not a forever-type thing.”
Savannah Republican Sen. Page Walley voted against advancing the bill, citing concerns from utilities. Tullahoma Republican Sen. Janice Bowling, Nashville Democratic Sen. Heidi Campbell and Memphis Democratic Sen. London Lamar also voted against the measure.
Sens. Pody, Reeves, Lowe, Sen. Bobby Harshbarger and Sen. Jessie Seal voted in favor of moving the bill forward.
One Response
What’s needed is gray water separation but that wont happen. Also the systems operating right should get exemptions.