Update 2020-05-01: Valdosta Pump Station Standard Operating Procedures 2020-04-20.

I got two completely different sets of SOPs when I asked Valdosta and GA-EPD for Standard Operating Procedures. Neither of them seem to say anything about the Pump Station that was offline in early December 2019, causing a record raw sewage spill.

Sanitary Sewer Overflow Response Process

Towards the end of February, I asked the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GA-EPD) and the City of Valdosta for Valdosta’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) as discussed in the January 8, 2020, public meeting about the December 2019 record raw sewage spill from a manhole downstream on Sugar Creek from the Remer Lane Pump Station, which had been left turned off. That was the meeting in which Valdosta City Manager Mark Barber told me to “ask EPD,” so I did, and I also asked Valdosta.

Received from GA-EPD:

• a letter referring to “attachment 5b of the attached Order”, which is the SOP for responding to sewage spills, containing the above diagram
• Valdosta Signed and Executed Consent Order of December 9, 2013

That copy of the Consent Order is much longer (66 pages) and more recent (December 9, 2013) than the version (9 pages and September 23, 2013) on the City of Valdosta website and blogged by WWALS in 2018.

GA-EPD cover letter

Received from the City of Valdosta were Standard Operating Procedures for

• Mud Creek WPCP
• Withlacoochee WWTP

Those are all very interesting, but if they say anything about SOPs for the Remer Lane Pump Station (or the Gornto Road Pump Station), I can’t find it.

So I have sent each of Valdosta and GA-EPD another request, this time very specifically for the SOP for the Pump Stations required in the Consent Order, Attachment 6, “Corrective Plans and Schedules”, Action Item No. 1a. on page 63, “Pump Station, Force Main, Headworks and Equalization Basin Project: Design and construct two new master pump stations…”. We shall see what they return for that request.

Item 1a: Pump Station, Force Main….

If the responses are that there is no such Pump Station SOP, maybe you will wonder as I will, why not?

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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