Sewer officials to report overflow difficulties to stakeholders

The afternoon of June 2 in Seneca is being reserved for an accounting of what the county sewer authority is doing to bring itself back into the good graces of state regulators when it comes to overflows in the service area.  That Wednesday afternoon, in a three-hour meeting, the Joint Regional Sewer Authority’s outside attorney and consultant are to explain to the member cities a DHEC consent order addressing the overflows and other deficiencies within the wastewater system.  The explanation is to center on what’s called a cMOM audit and adherence to criteria of the U-S EPA.  The forecast is that it’s going to take years for the JRSA to meet the consent order requirements. Meeting the regulatory requirements comes at a time when the JRSA is nearing requiring member cities Seneca, Walhalla, and Westminster to pay more for sewage treatment and the likelihoods that the cities retail customers will feel those increases.