GLIN==> Mystery Trash Washups on West Michigan Beaches Solved

Alliance for the Great Lakes * Milwaukee Riverkeeper





For Immediate Release

Monday, Nov. 21, 2011



Case Closed: Mystery Trash Washups on West Michigan Beaches Solved


It’s been a long time coming, but the suspected source of two massive mystery trash washups along west Michigan beaches in 2008 and 2010 has been identified.


An investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard and EPA<http://www.greatlakes.org/Document.Doc?id=1103> cites the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District’s combined sewer overflows into Lake Michigan -- a foul mix of sanitary sewage and storm water -- as the “logical suspect” behind both summer washups.


The finding comes more than six months after the Alliance for the Great Lakes filed a federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the information, seeking answers on behalf of the many Alliance volunteers who responded to the incidents and helped the Coast Guard in its initial investigation.


In total, the Coast Guard located 266 pages of documents from its investigation and shared the bulk of them with the Alliance.


The records show MMSD released an estimated 686 million gallons of combined sewer overflow June 7-9, 2008 and an estimated 1.9 billion gallons July 22-25, 2010. Flooding summer rains struck the region both times, overwhelming the plant and prompting major releases into Lake Michigan.


In the days that followed, tons of “mystery trash”-- including food wrappers, bottle caps, plastic bits, syringes and woody debris -- was found on beaches along some 50 miles<http://www.greatlakes.org/Page.aspx?pid=1176> of the west Michigan coastline. Alliance Adopt-a-Beach™ <http://www.greatlakes.org/adoptabeach> volunteers and shoreline property owners were among the first responders, clearing beaches and reporting to the Coast Guard  any mailing addresses, bar codes and other identifiable markings they found -- information that ultimately helped the Coast Guard pinpoint the source.


The FOIA documents say plastic materials found on the beaches likely originated from a recycling center; the source of the medical waste has not yet been explained.


“Solving sewage overflows in the Great Lakes is complex work that requires innovation, funding and regulation,” says Alliance Water Quality Program Manager Lyman Welch, who filed the FOIA request. “These findings are troubling, particularly because the problems aren’t unique to any one city or lake.”


For example, the same flooding rains that forced the Milwaukee sewage discharge in July 2010 also hit Chicago, overwhelming the sewage treatment plant there and prompting the release of 6.5 billion gallons of sewage-laced stormwater into Lake Michigan. The probe reported no waste from the Chicago discharge among the west Michigan debris, however.


Combined sewer systems that collect and treat both storm water and sanitary sewage are the main culprit, says Welch, who cautions “Let’s not wait for syringes to wash up on Michigan beaches again before taking the next step to control sewer overflows to the Great Lakes. “


The Coast Guard and EPA have closed their investigations into the trash washups, with EPA finding no federal permit violations because MMSD is allowed to release combined sewer overflows in some circumstances. Specifically, the district’s state-issued discharge permit for its Deep Tunnel storage system allows up to six overflow discharges per year, or the release of up to 15 percent of the total volume of combined sewage captured on a system-wide annual average basis.


Welch praised MMSD for implementing a variety of innovative stormwater control practices to help reduce overflows, and encouraged the district to continue to invest more in both green and traditional infrastructure.


However, he emphasized that the Wisconsin standard for MMSD needs to be tightened when the treatment plant’s discharge permit – now more than three years overdue for renewal – is re-issued.


“MMSD and customer municipalities need to be more aggressive in replacing and fixing ‘leaky’ pipes and failing infrastructure, which is overwhelming sewer capacity especially during heavy storms,” said Cheryl Nenn of Milwaukee Riverkeeper. “As taxpayers, we need to invest in our sewer infrastructure to ensure clean water and clean beaches, and to minimize impacts from more frequent and intense rain events, such as those in 2008 and 2010.”


Moving forward, the Alliance calls for the following additional changes:


·        State regulators must ensure that MMSD’s new discharge permit strengthens and implements the Capacity, Management, Operation and Maintenance program for MMSD and its service communities, includes enforceable timetables and conditions to meet federal CSO policy, and protects sensitive areas along Lake Michigan.


·        Wisconsin must adopt strong rules aimed at preventing sanitary sewer overflows. The Alliance, Milwaukee Riverkeeper and other partners started working with Wisconsin to develop strong new rules in 2006 and continue to urge official adoption of the proposed SSO rules, which have been finished since December 2010.


·        Congress must increase funding levels for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, the primary source of low-cost loans for upgrading infrastructure and reducing sewage overflows.

<http://www.greatlakes.org/Document.Doc?id=1103>
See Report on U.S. Coast Guard and EPA probe ><http://www.greatlakes.org/Document.Doc?id=1103>
<http://www.greatlakes.org/Document.Doc?id=1103>
More about Sewage Overflows/CSOs ><http://www.greatlakes.org/CSOs>

Contacts
Lyman Welch, Alliance Water Quality Manager:
             312-939-0838 x230, lwelch at greatlakes.org<mailto:lwelch at greatlakes.org>
Jamie Cross, Alliance Adopt-a-Beach™ Program Manager:
             616-850-0745, jcross at greatlakes.org<mailto:jcross at greatlakes.org>
Cheryl Nenn, Riverkeeper, Milwaukee Riverkeeper:
             414-287-0207 x2; 414-378-3043 (cell), Cheryl_Nenn at milwaukeeriverkeeper.org<mailto:Cheryl_Nenn at milwaukeeriverkeeper.org>


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Formed in 1970, the Alliance for the Great Lakes is the oldest independent Great Lakes citizens’ organization in North America. Our mission is to: conserve and restore the world's largest freshwater resource using policy, education and local efforts, ensuring a healthy Great Lakes and clean water for generations of people and wildlife. More about the Alliance for the Great Lakes is online at www.greatlakes.org<http://www.greatlakes.org/>.


Susan Campbell | Communications Program Manager | scampbell at greatlakes.org
Alliance for the Great Lakes | www.greatlakes.org
1845 N. Farwell Ave., Suite 100, Milwaukee, WI  53202 | 414-540-0699

Protect Your Lakes at http://takeaction.greatlakes.org/subscribe

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