CMSD

The Contentnea Metropolitan Sewerage District (CMSD), owned by the municipal governments of Ayden, Grifton and Winterville, is facing tough times with a deteriorating infrastructure that will have to be improved at a tremendous expense.

Chuck Smithwick, District Manager of the CMSD, went before the Winterville Board of Alderman Monday night with Floyd Chambliss of the Wooten Company to explain the CMSD’s approaching to its aging facilities. Likewise, both men were at an Ayden Board of Commissioners’ meeting earlier and will also meet with the Grifton Board of Commissioners.

Smithwick pointed out that the CMSD is getting ready to negotiate a  special order of consent (SOC) with the state because of spills at a pumping station along the N.C. 11 corridor near Ayden-Grifton High School. He pointed out that Winterville pumps its sewerage to the plant in Grifton. The idea for such a plant was devised in 1974 and went online in 1976. The plant was rated at 2 million gallons per day of treated wastewater and was later re-rated at 2.8 million gallons per day.

The plant faces a number of issues. In addition to its own aging facilities, there is an infiltration and inflow problem in the collection systems of the three towns. The CMSD also has infiltration and inflow issues on its 2.1 miles of line along N.C. 11 because of the tile corrosion.

The lift station near the high school catches 85% of the system’s flow and because of significant rainfall has had 14 overflows. Those overflows have created environmental concerns from the North Carolina Division of Water Quality.

Chambliss said the CMSD facilities are old and have reached the end of their service life. He went through a litany of the various facilities and put a cost amount on each one. The bottom line is that the cost to renovate the plant and its facilities will cost nearly $4.7 million. That includes a large trailer with a mounted pump that would be used to control lift station flooding during large rains. Chambliss indicated that the cost could be lowered to about $3.3 million if slip lining is done to repair the concrete lines in lieu of full  replacement.

There are also other issues to consider when the CMSD decides how to approach its plan to upgrade the plant. For example, if the CMSD wanted to increase its plant by 1 million gallons per day, it would cost over $7 million for a permit, not including a cost of about $8 million to construct a new plant.

Chambliss said the state once overlooked wastewater spills due to aging lines. Now, he said, the state and federal officials are coming down hard on aging sewer lines because they are correctible. “The state is not shrugging its shoulders on overflows,” Chambliss stated. Not only is the CMSD getting notice of violations, but fines for the overflows will be forthcoming.

To avert future fines, the CMSD is put in a position to negotiate the SOC. Chambliss described the SOC has a legal document between the CMSD and the state that will set a series of action both can agree to in an effort to eliminate the spills. There will be dates set for certain things to be accomplished. In return for the CMSD making the effort to improve its facilities to eliminate the spills, the state will forego any fines if there are spills during the period of the SOC.

Chambliss said the work to eliminate the spills costs money and will come from member municipalities. He said how the SOC will be negotiated is still uncertain. He pointed out that he’s not sure how it will affect individual towns, but that it could affect them since the CMSD only owns 2.1 miles of collection system with the remaining inside the three towns. Likewise, many of the infiltration and inflow problems are also inside the three towns.

Chambliss said the negotiation of the SOC will be unique because of the three-municipal ownership. But that it could affect the amount of flow each town will have which, in turn, may affect development or the ability to develop properties. The SOC will probably have to set flows, but Chambliss said he’s not sure if each town will have a set flow or if the CMSD as a whole will have one flow and will administer what flows each town will have. “It is quite serious,” Chambliss said.

Chambliss said the CMSD will probably begin to act on these issues by the next meeting. “We’re here before you to let you know. If there’s a restriction on the number of connections, it can impact growth and what you’re doing now.”

Chambliss said the time frame for the SOC may be five years, but he’s not certain. That’s another issue that can be negotiated. He believes the state will suspend enforcement once the CMSD makes application for the SOC. He said the meat of the negotiations will take place during the next six months, but may continue over a period of four to five years.

Chambliss said Ayden is about ready to release a $2 million contract for work on solving some of its infiltration and inflow problems He called that a “pretty aggressive effort” and that Grifton has used flood relief funds to work on some of their sewer issues.

He also pointed out that the CMSD has a $400,000 Rural Center Grant and has pledged $400,000 in reserves for a total of $800,000 to work on its facilities. Likewise, the CMSD  will see another $400,000 grant from the Rural Center. The CMSD also has a capacity grant that will evaluate the infiltration and inflow issues in the three towns.

Chambliss said the CMSD does not have as many grant sources to get money as there used to be. He added that the Clean Water Trust Fund does not like to fund efforts to rehabilitate facilities.

Chambliss says the infiltration and inflow problem is such that about half of the plant’s daily treatment is used for that purpose along. So he believes it makes sense to sold the infiltration and inflow problems in lieu of expanding the plant.

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