Waste Water Project Draws Backlash

Jasper’s Sewage Plant expansion may prove lucrative for the city, but residents are getting riled up over the odor as well as the increased truck traffic through their neighborhood from the project. Some also feel the city’s spoils are at the expense of county residents.

Montview resident Deborah Galloway says she opposes the expansion project and plans to press county and city governments for a solution to the odor and traffic problems.

“We want what we’re experiencing here on this county road to stop,”

she says,

“And we certainly don’t want our problem to increase.”

Galloway says approximately 20 eighteen-wheeler transfer trucks a day pass in front of her house, carrying material described as sewage, sludge and fluid to the facility at the end of the road. She says she hears trucks starting at 4:30 A.M. until 6 or 7:00 P.M. The number of trucks was corroborated by Facility Supervisor David Hall, who said the number of trucks has decreased in the past week, because the plant has to catch up with processing. Hall also says a truck recently brought in porta-potty material, which he said was not allowed and may have caused a delay.

Galloway says traffic on the road is dangerous.

“There’s very little visibility,”

she says.

“There’s a huge drop-off right below my house here and should one of those trucks have difficulty stopping…they couldn’t stop.”

Montview Drive, off of South Main Street outside Jasper City Limits, has a steep decline as it slopes toward the sewage plant. The road is also narrow and appears in most places like a one-way street. Several residents recall an incident when a transfer truck ran over a mailbox last year. According to the owner of the mailbox, the city quietly paid the damage amount.

“It’s clear,”

Galloway says,

“that it (the road) was never designed for the entrance or exit of transfer trucks….You cannot get in or out when they’re doing that—that in itself is very dangerous. (Also) there are houses right on the corner (where) there are little children playing.”

The shoulders of Montview are worn, warped and fractured, while potholes crater the already uneven road. Residents say the heavy trucks have caused this damage. One resident, who wishes to remain anonymous, also says that fluid spilling from the trucks seeps into the pavement and cracks the road. Additionally, he’s concerned the ill odor wafting from the plant could cause health issues. He went on to say in order to reduce rank odors water plants typically keep the material moving to aerate it, thus reducing the smell. Notably, the city plans to install aerators and filters as part of the upcoming expansion project. He suggested that the reason Mayor John Weaver has been unresponsive is because Montview resides outside the city limits. As such, residents here don’t represent votes.

During an interview with FYN, the resident called EPD to find out if the city has all the correct permits to operate at its projected capacity. Mr. Langley from the EPD who answered the phone was incredulous when he learned that eighteen-wheeler transfer trucks were carrying waste on Montview to the Jasper facility. Langely said he’d look into and get back to him.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, another resident says she’s noticed the increased traffic too, putting the number at 35 trucks a day. She also said that some of them are from out of county and state.

Montview residents continue seeking solutions to the problem. Most want the city to create a new road to the facility or establish another drop-off point where the sewage can be pumped in. They feel this would reduce the odor and traffic. One land owner has offered his land to create a new access road, but the offer was dismissed, residents said.

The expansion is expected to generate approximately half a million dollars in revenue for the city. However, when residents have approached the mayor about these issues, he says the city lacks revenue to create a new road or establish another drop-off point.

Mayor Weaver has not responded to FYN’s request for comment on the issue.

The city is expected to open bids for construction of the project at its May sixth city council meeting. Residents indicated they will attend.