ROGERS — Wastewater plant operators on both sides of the Oklahoma-Arkansas line remain in phosphorous limbo waiting an Environmental Protection Agency decision.
“Our discharge permit expired in February 2011, but we continue to operate under that permit until the EPA decides what the phosphorus limit will be for the water coming out of our wastewater plant,” said Craig Noble, superintendent of Rogers Water Utilities, which operates the city’s wastewater plant.
At A Glance
The Next Big Thing
The next hurdle for cities could be stormwater runoff limits. The Environmental Protection Agency is studying the effects of stormwater runoff on rivers and streams. The EPA has already mandated that cities in metropolitan statistical areas educate residents, contractors and others about the hazards of stormwater runoff. The next step may be the treatment of stormwater runoff, according to city officials.
Source: Staff Report
At what level the EPA sets the limit can have a major impact on Rogers and other cities with wastewater plants that drain into the Illinois River watershed.
“If the EPA lowers the phosphorus level from the current 1.0 parts per million to 0.1 parts per million it will cost us several million dollars to meet that new standard,” Noble said.
Sewer rates would likely have to increase in order to pay for the work required to meet the new standard, he said.
The Northwest Arkansas Conservation Authority wastewater plant is the only plant in the Arkansas that meets the 0.1 discharge rate, according to EPA officials.
Bentonville and Tontitown are the only two cities using the authority’s plant.
Rogers, Springdale and several smaller cities are also members of the authority and could connect to the plant at some time in the future.
The authority’s plant would have to be expanded to handle additional flow, with member cities footing the cost of expansion. Individual cities would be responsible for laying the pipeline to connect to the plant, authority officials said.
EPA officials changed the discharge limit for the authority plant during construction, lowering the discharge rate to 0.1.
“It cost approximately $4 million to add the additional filtration system,” said Rick McClain, authority plant manager.
“If Rogers and Springdale have to meet the same standard it would be very costly. They have a much higher flow rate than we do. We were able to make changes during the construction of the plant. An add-on to the Rogers or Springdale plant would be much more expensive,” McClain added.
Phosphorus discharge has been a major concern in Northwest Arkansas for more than a dozen years. The majority of wastewater releases in Northwest Arkansas are in to the Illinois River watershed.
Phosphorus from chicken litter used as fertilizer on pastures in past years, natural erosion of stream banks and the discharge from wastewater plants draining into the Illinois River and its tributaries caused algae levels to increase, which damaged the water quality, according to Oklahoma officials.
EPA officials declined to answer oral questions regarding phosphorus limits and a timeline for setting limits, but did respond to emailed questions Thursday.
“The EPA anticipates completion of the draft (total maximum daily load) for public review in the summer of 2013, with final TMDLs to be completed during the fall,” according to the email.
EPA officials are scheduled to meet with local officials and residents, regarding the phosphorus limit, Thursday at the Jones Center in Springdale to discuss efforts to develop a model for the Illinois River watershed.
At that time, EPA officials and its contractors will update the public where the issue stands, according to the email.
“We are planning on attending the meeting next week. I feel like other cities and wastewater plant operators will also attend,” Noble said.
The water quality in the Illinois River has steadily improved the past five or six years because of joint efforts in Oklahoma and Arkansas, said Rick Stubblefield, a member of the Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission and the Illinois River Watershed partnership.
“The improvement in the water quality has been stunning,” Stubblefield said. “There are stretches of the Illinois that are crystal clear again, just as it was 50 years ago. That doesn’t mean all the algae is gone, but it is better.”
Chicken litter is trucked out of the Illinois watershed and wastewater plants reduced the amount of phosphorus leaving the plant, Stubblefield said.
“I’m not sure that reducing the amount of phosphorus leaving wastewater plants to 0.1 parts per million will do much to improve the situation,” Stubblefield said.
It appears that the majority of phosphorus reaching the Illinois River is from nonpoint sources such as erosion and stormwater run off, he said.
“I couldn’t agree more,” said Noble. “Erosion from river banks can put 1,000 pounds of phosphorus a day into the watershed. A wastewater plant produces about 11 pounds of phosphorus a day. I don’t think we are the problem,” Noble said.