ANN ARBOR, MI — Ann Arbor must pay a $45,000 fine for repeated sewage overflows in recent years.

The penalty is included in terms of an administrative consent order with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy approved by City Council this week.

The 21-page document outlines several sewage overflows since 2016, including some discharging large amounts into the Huron River and Malletts Creek.

Some were the result of pipe blockages caused by tree roots, gravel, concrete, and “flushable” wipes that the city warns residents not to flush down the toilet.

Some spills have resulted in temporarily shutting down canoeing, kayaking and tubing on the Huron River.

While sewage overflows are never desirable, city workers rapidly respond to each one to address immediate cleanup concerns and evaluate long-term maintenance needs, Jennifer Lawson, the city’s water quality manager, told council.

The city is being fined for violations of the state’s Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act, which controls pollution.

The following sewage overflows are documented:

March 17, 2016 — 500 gallons discharged on Washtenaw Avenue due to a broken sewer line.

March 23-April 6, 2016 — 400,000 gallons discharged to Malletts Creek at 1979 Huron Parkway due to tree roots clogging a 10-inch-diameter line.

May 13-16, 2016 — 36,000 gallons (unknown amount to Huron River) discharged at 2180 Down Up Circle due to tree roots clogging an eight-inch-diameter line.

Sept. 17-19, 2016 — 600,000 gallons discharged to Huron River by Geddes Avenue and Devonshire Park due to a broken sewer line and contractor error.

June 22, 2017 — 13,500 gallons discharged to Malletts Creek off South State Street and Hidden Valley Club Drive due to failure and collapse of sewer liner.

Feb. 20, 2018 — 180 to 300 gallons discharged at the wastewater treatment plant from an overflow pipe.

Feb. 22, 2018 — 6,000 gallons discharged to the rear yard of a home on Fox Hunt Drive due to tree roots.

April 3, 2018 — 1,100 gallons discharged from a manhole at Warwick and Glenwood roads due to tree roots.

June 10, 2018 — 300,000 gallons discharged in the Dow Prairie area of Nichols Arboretum after a contractor left 300 feet of rope in the sewer and caused a blockage.

Oct. 31, 2018 — 150,000 gallons discharged at Concordia College due to a sewer line blocked with “flushable” wipes.

Jan. 5, 2019 — 675 gallons discharged to Malletts Creek due to tree roots

May 1, 2019 — 75,000 gallons discharged to the Huron River from a backwash well at the wastewater plant.

May 8, 2019 — 1,800 gallons discharged at Nichols Arboretum due to gravel blocking an eight-inch-diameter pipe.

July 5, 2019 — 3,000 gallons discharged into the Huron River via Allen Creek due to a sewer pipe break at First and Liberty streets.

Aug. 26, 2019 — 2,000 gallons discharged to the Huron River via Allen Creek due to concrete chunks in the sewer on Ashley Street.

Jan. 11, 2020 — 4,800 gallons discharged to Malletts Creek and Swift Run Creek due to heavy rains.

March 14, 2020 — 450 gallons discharged at the entrance to Nichols Arboretum due to a blockage caused by a large piece of concrete.

Another sign at Motte and Bailey Booksellers, 212 N. Fourth Ave. in Ann Arbor, offers a tip to those using “flushable” wipes amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “Remember — flushable wipes aren’t flushable. Really. Put them in the trash so sewers don’t get clogged.”Ryan Stanton | The Ann Arbor News

The order requires the city to submit a new plan for managing high-volume wastewater plant flows, a report and map detailing the total number of miles of the sewer system cleaned and inspected since 2016, and a plan to evaluate the remainder of the sewer system not inspected in the last six years.

The city is required to identify impairments that have caused or are likely to cause blockages, breaks or overflows and submit a report on how to correct those and a timeline, with progress reports due to the state each year.

The city also must complete an asset management plan by June 30 and begin implementing it.

Council Member Jack Eaton, D-4th Ward, said he considers this evidence the city needs to do a better job taking care of basic infrastructure.

“As environmental stewards, I believe we need to do better than we’ve done in the past,” he said. “I think that this consent order actually moves us in that direction, and the fine is rather small, and we should be happy for that.”

Craig Hupy, the city’s public services administrator, said the work required is already budgeted and much has already started “in recognition of the upgrades we need to make to the sewer system and its maintenance.”

Lawson told council the asset management plan, including rehabilitation and repair recommendations for the entire system, is nearly complete and implementation has already started, as preventative maintenance recommendations are being integrated into daily work orders and assignments.

Council Member Anne Bannister, D-1st Ward, asked about plans to create a publicly accessible online dashboard showing details about all of the sewage spills.

Increased transparency will help hold the city accountable and “we all win when residents can help us with our decision-making,” Bannister said.

That’s in the works, Hupy said.

Mayor Christopher Taylor took offense to Eaton’s suggestion that the city isn’t doing a good enough job paying attention to the sewer system. He called it an “unfounded insult to the great work that staff does up and down the line.”

Many blockages in the sewer lines aren’t city staff’s fault, Taylor argued.

“The plain and vast majority of the discharges here are the result of contractor error and resident error,” he said. “Staff focuses on these matters consistently, with diligence and foresight, and I’m grateful for their work.”

Council Member Jane Lumm, I-2nd Ward, said it’s not black and white, and there is some gray area.

“I’ve seen the evidence of this,” she said, noting she serves on the city’s insurance board and reviews claims for damage caused by sewer overflows.

When trying to figure out the cause, she said, one of the questions asked is if the sewer line is in a maintenance district, as not all sewer lines are regularly inspected.

“The reality is that the entire city is not in a maintenance district where we go out and periodically TV and examine the infrastructure,” she said. “So, it’s just something we’ve not been able to do. And I do think that public works does a great job, but they’re limited, and so we get these surprises.”

Council Member Kathy Griswold, D-2nd Ward, said someone has to be held accountable and the buck stops with council.

“We have to be more proactive in the future,” she said.

Council Member Jeff Hayner, D-1st Ward, asked if the city can recoup penalty fines for sewage spills caused by contractor error. City Attorney Stephen Postema said he’d look into that and let council know.

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