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Lynchburg Gets $2.5 Million Grant from EPA to Fix Sewer Problems

Release Date: 2/8/1999
Contact Information: Ruth Podems, (215) 814-5540

Philadelphia - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded a $2.5 million grant to the City of Lynchburg  to help correct water pollution problems caused by the city’s old combined sewer system. The state will contribute a $3.5 million grant towards the project.

The federal and state grants will be used to construct a new sewer system, which will use separate pipes to carry wastewater and stormwater.

"Outdated combined sewer systems cause water pollution problems in many cities nationwide.  The EPA and state governments see improving sewers as a major component of improving water quality, and this grant to Lynchburg is an important first step," said W. Michael McCabe, EPA Regional Administrator.

Over a century ago, Lynchburg built one of the finest combined sewer systems in the nation, designed to carry both wastewater and stormwater away from the densely populated downtown areas to the nearest stream.  By the middle of the 20th century, Lynchburg built a wastewater treatment plant to treat the wastewater before it was discharged to the James River.  

When the treatment plant was built, it was a common practice to size it and the connecting sewers for "dry weather" flows.  During "wet weather," the water level in the pipes would rise as the stormwater mixed with the wastewater.  Gates were supposed to divert the overflow to points along the streams and the James River, however, the gates often failed and the wastewater would back up onto the nearest streets causing an immediate health hazard.

More than 140 different overflow points have been identified in Lynchburg, and they continue to degrade the local streams and the James River.  The Commonwealth of Virginia has given top priority to restoring the water quality of the James, and therefore,  the City of Lynchburg has committed to reconstruct most of the existing sewer system.

Funding is provided under the EPA’s portion of the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act of 1998.

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