The city of Peoria, Illinois and its sanitary district have agreed to make sweeping changes to their sewage and wastewater treatment system to address untreated human waste discharges into the Illinois River and Peoria Lake, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced yesterday. The proposed consent decree was reached by the city with the state, the EPA, and the Department of Justice after the plaintiffs filed a complaint against the city seeking injunctive relief and the assessment of civil penalties.
The case arose from Clean Water Act (CWA) violations relating to combined sewer overflows (CSOs) and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit exceedances. The EPA explained that the illegal discharges resulted from the city’s ill-equipped sanitary system that was unable to handle increased water volumes from heavy rain and snow events. In turn, untreated human waste mixed with stormwater and was discharged into the Illinois River and Peoria Lake, resulting in high concentrations of bacteria, sediment, and other pollutants.
The consent decree, subject to judicial approval, requires Peoria to implement remedial measures to reduce CSO discharges, among other things. Notably, the settlement offers Peoria flexibility in how it chooses to effectuate these measures. According to the press release, Peoria intends to use substantial green infrastructure like permeable pavement, rain gardens, and bioswales, to achieve its performance goals. Reportedly, the estimated cost of the controls is $129 million and will be completed by the end of 2039.
The EPA noted that the new controls should reduce annual CSO discharges by 92%, preventing around 696,000 pounds of pollutants from entering the Illinois River and Peoria Lake each year. These improvements, the EPA said, will increase water quality and enhance recreational activity opportunities.
Susan Bodine, EPA Assistant Administrator for the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance remarked that “[t]his settlement will provide a model for other communities that want the opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of green infrastructure and the flexibility to take advantage of improvements in green infrastructure technology over time.”
