DeKalb Begins Work to Fix ‘Ground Zero’ Sewer Spill Site

print
Dekalb County

DECATUR, Ga. – Today, DeKalb County demolished a house and began construction to repair sewer pipes near Melanie Court, the site of the most sanitary sewer spills in the county, with 22 reported since 2014.

“This is ground zero for the challenges my administration has faced with the long-delayed repairs and maintenance to DeKalb’s sanitary sewer system,” said DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond.

“Repairing the sewer system is critical to ensure our quality of life and continued economic prosperity,” CEO Thurmond said. “The county has prioritized consent decree repairs and made significant investments to pinpoint the problems, prevent sewer spills and upgrade the aging infrastructure.”

The $10.9 million Melanie Court Sanitary Sewer Improvement Project is taking place in three phases. The first phase, completed in February 2019, included replacing damaged pipelining to reduce stormwater from upstream and fixing pipe to allow for uninterrupted flows. The next stages of the project will include rerouting a sewer line near the creek to correct a design defect in the original construction, which includes eliminating a 90-degree turn. The county will also fix structural defects, cracks and breaks in pipes.

Repeat spills at Melanie Court are the result of stormwater intrusion which occurs when rainwater enters the sanitary sewer system from a variety of sources, such as flooded manholes and other sewer system infrastructure, broken or damaged sewer lines and root intrusion.

The Melanie Court site has experienced nearly twice as many spills recorded at Hood Circle, another problematic repeat spill site. On Monday, Oct. 21, DeKalb County began a $3.2 million sewer improvement project to repair or replace approximately 2,400 linear feet of pipes at Hood Circle.

The Melanie Court Sanitary Sewer Improvement project is part of DeKalb County’s $1.2 billion initiative to rebuild the county’s aging infrastructure. All repairs at Melanie Court are anticipated to be completed by December 2020.

 

 

###