The Facts
The Toledo Waterways Initiative is a federally mandated environmental program to reduce pollution to the City of Toledo, Ohio’s waterways. TWI was created as the result of a Consent Decree handed down in 2001 by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio’s Western Division, located in Toledo. This Consent Decree settled an 11-year lawsuit between the City of Toledo and the U.S. and Ohio Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA).
In July 2002, Toledo voters overwhelmingly approved an ordinance settling the lawsuit. That settlement requires the City to update its sewer and wastewater treatment facilities to eliminate or minimize the release of raw sewage into Swan Creek and the Ottawa and Maumee Rivers.
Section Four presents information on TWI’s funding, impact on rates, monthly reports on combined sewer overflows, what residents can do to help the program and a look at community surveys taken over the history of the program. Following is an overview of the section:
Funding
The 18-year series of improvements to upgrade the City’s sewer system is expected to cost more than $500 million. Funding for the program comes from an incremental increase of sanitary sewer rates which began in 2002. In an effort to minimize the impact on ratepayers, the City has been successful in and continues to aggressively pursuing federal and state funding and grants.
Sewer Rates
In 2007, Toledo City Council increased the City’s sanitary sewer rates by 9.9 percent annually for the coming four-year period. Council is expected to consider increases in the sewer rates for another four-year period with legislation to be introduced later in 2010.
Sewer Overflows
Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) occur when storm water mixed with sewage overflows into the Maumee River, Ottawa River and Swan Creek. The City and the U.S. and Ohio EPAs have developed and revised a Long Term Control Plan, which details sewer separation and storage projects that TWI will design and oversee the construction to significantly reduce the number and volume of these overflows. This section includes a map showing the location of the CSO outfalls (overflow locations) and monthly charts going back to July 2004 listing the dates of CSO overflows, their location and their duration.
What You Can Do
The Toledo Waterways Initiative has and will produce great environmental benefit to the rivers and streams flowing through Toledo. There are things you can do to help. Rainwater needs to find it’s way to the open waterways and contaminated water needs to find it’s way to the treatment plant, so it may be cleaned up before discharging to the river. There are things you can do in your everyday life to help in this effort. We hope you will take the time to consider the environment as you go about your daily routine.