This sign on the Susquehanna riverbank warns people to avoid contact with the water during “heavy rainfall events.”
Harrisburg’s utility authority has approved a long-term plan intended to significantly reduce pollutants flowing into area waterways.
On Wednesday, the Capital Region Water (CRW) board of directors voted unanimously to accept changes to a prior agreement that details a course of action to improve the quality of local waters, including the Susquehanna River.
Specifically, the agreement outlines projects that CRW will undertake over the next decade so that the city’s sewer infrastructure will capture at least 85% of system flow during wet weather.
“This is a very good thing,” said board chair Marc Kurowski. “It helps us to find a path to get through, over the next 10 years.”
The goal, Kurowski added, is not just to meet, but to exceed, the 85% capture rate. In 2021, CRW reported a capture rate of just 43% during wet-weather periods.
Like in many older cities, much of Harrisburg has a combined sewer system that handles both wastewater and stormwater flowing to its treatment plant. When it rains, the system is easily overwhelmed, sending untreated water directly into area waters, including the river.
In 2015, CRW agreed to a partial consent decree with several governmental agencies—the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Protection—to begin to address the problem. The board’s approval on Wednesday represents a key step in finalizing that agreement.
According to CRW, the mitigation plan includes various types of projects, such as system repairs, rehabilitation and replacement.
For instance, this fall, CRW expects to re-start the $17 million rehabilitation of the Front Street interceptor, which runs through about three miles of Riverfront Park.
In 2019, CRW began installing new pipe liner in the 108-year-old, 30-inch diameter main. The next phase, which will take about a year, will complete the project from about Seneca Street to the pumping station in Shipoke.
CRW’s system improvement plan also includes the continued build-out of green infrastructure, which is designed to capture stormwater before it enters the sewer system.
The authority estimates the plan’s 10-year cost at about $200 million.
“We made sure that this particular modification to the partial consent decree was affordable to our ratepayers,” said board member Andrew Enders. “These are important projects, but we have to be able to afford them in order to continue to provide the services that we do.”
In 2020, CRW imposed a stormwater fee to help pay for system improvements. It stands at $6.15 a month for most residential customers.
With board approval, the agreement—technically termed a modification of the existing partial consent decree—needs to be executed by all parties and then lodged in federal court. After publication in the Federal Register, a 30-day public comment period will begin.
Following consideration of public comments and any final changes, the U.S. Department of Justice will request court approval for the agreement. If the court grants the motion, the agreement will be considered final.
The process should be complete this fall, according to CRW board members.
“This has been seven-plus years in the making,” Kurowski said. “We’re almost there with the official-official version, but it took a long way to get here.”
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