By Pat Donahue and Lucille Lannigan
The Liberty County Development Authority is dusting off plans for a wastewater treatment facility — and it’s leading to a dust up with a neighboring county.
The LCDA is looking at how to finance a wastewater treatment plant that could process to 1 million gallons per day, and could be expanded to as much as 3 million gallons per day. The wastewater would be treated to reuse standards, meaning it could be used for irrigation or industrial purposes and it would free up capacity at existing treatment plans, such as Midway’s.
“A great opportunity lies before us,” Liberty County Commission Chairman Donald Lovette said. “I am pleased with what this project can do for our county.”
The LCDA showed its plans to members of the county commission recently and outlined the need for a wastewater treatment plant in its efforts to attract industry. The LCDA contracts with the City of Midway for wastewater treatment, but it is a small system and there is no room for additional capacity. Plus, the city is growing and also may need capacity.
The LCDA looked at a treatment plant in Tradeport East back in 2006, but that effort halted with the Great Recession.
“The time is now,” LCDA CEO Brynn Grant said. “We can be thoughtful and achieve some good things for our county.”
“A big opportunity for growth is what it is,” said Tony Rojas, principal at TPR Consulting and former president and executive director of the Macon Water Authority. “You need water and sewer to get a prospect. They want to see fire hydrants and manholes. You really need a plant for industries that are already out there.”
As part of its strategic plan, developed last year after a nine-month process, the LCDA is targeting industries that can alleviate the county’s economic struggles. The state median household income is near $74,600, but Liberty’s lags behind at $54,308. In 1980, Liberty County was in the second quartile of per capita income nationally. It’s now in the bottom quartile.
Using data compiled from the United Way of the Coastal Empire to determine families who are designed as ALICE — which stands for asset- limited, income-constrained, employed — the LCDA is trying to recruit and land industries and manufacturers paying a higher wage. According to the ALICE figures, 54% of Liberty County families are the ALICE threshold, meaning they are earning money but not building up any savings, or worse.
“We see that every day,” Grant said. “That’s motivating to me.”
A MBR system houses all the treatment in one tank and takes up less space. Richmond Hill operates one at its Sterling Creek reclamation facility and it has a capacity of 4 MGD, or millions of gallons per day.
Different systems
The LCDA is looking at what is known as a MBR, or membrane bioreactor, to treat wastewater. A land application system would take up 800 to 1,000 acres, Chris Stovall of Thomas and Hutton said, “and that’s with good soil conditions.”
Land application systems also are useful for only about 20 to 30 years, Stovall added.
Most private sewage treatment is done with septic tanks, but the LCDA pointed out those are vulnerable to soil and site conditions and can leak untreated wastewater into the ground, wells or nearby streams.
The LCDA has a site picked for the plant in its Tradeport East tract and it can be done in a building that is 200 by 80 feet. It would take up less space and the odor and noise from such a plant would be far less, Stovall noted.
“We found the MBR process is the best way to meet the needs and high quality,” Stovall said.
The treated wastewater that is not used for irrigation or industrial purposes is designed to be returned to the Laurel View River.
“We will use it wherever we can,” Stovall said.
A state Environmental Protection Division model showed the flow would have what is known as de minimis impact, meaning its impact is insignificant given the amount of flow in the river and the water quality of the discharge.
At maximum discharge, that would be 3 MGD into a river that has a flow of 437 MGD, or .003%, Stovall pointed out.
Th e treatment plant also could find a user with the development of the nearby Laurel View properties. The impact from that development, aside from cost-sharing on the plant, could mean as much as $20.6 million annually in property taxes paid to the county and $11 million a year in sales taxes.
Opposition across the line
But a Bryan County commissioner, who voiced opposition to the plans when presented years ago, remains adamantly against the LCDA’s plans.
Bryan County District 5 Commissioner Gene Wallace said the discharged water is too much of a risk for the shared waterways between Liberty and Bryan County. The two counties share the Jericho River, which flows into the Belfast River, then the Midway River, and ultimately into the Atlantic Ocean.
Wallace said he is concerned about plans to discharge treated effluent into a short, tidal saltwater river. He said the proposal calls for one million gallons per day initially, potentially expanding to three million gallons.
He emphasized the ecological sensitivity of the ecosystem.
“You’re dumping a bunch of fresh water in a saltwater river,” he said. “It’s only about 20 miles long and it’s salty all the time. When you get this huge — even if you have a tremendous amount of rain — it changes the salinity of the river. And rain is a one-time event. This is every day forever.”
Because the river is tidal and does not continuously flush toward the ocean, Wallace said the impacts could linger.
“Liberty County is experiencing potentially some pretty good growth coming up ahead and you know with growth means the need for sewer and water capabilities,” Wallace said. “They’re kind of between a rock and a hard place. You solve one problem, but then you create another problem.”
Wallace pointed out that a similar proposal around 2008 was met with “pretty fierce resistance.” He said he expects the same level of resistance today from both Liberty and Bryan County residents as the waterways are popular for recreation.
He said Bryan County was faced with a similar water discharge dilemma several years ago. Ultimately, the county decided that instead of building a new plant and releasing treated water into a saltwater creek, it would partner with the City of Richmond Hill, spending $6-$7 million to pipe wastewater to the city’s under-capacity treatment facility.
However, he acknowledged that alternatives like this may cost the county more.
“I’m sure there’s an answer,” Wallace said. “I don’t know what it is, but I don’t think the answer is dumping that fresh water in a saltwater river.”
The LCDA has met with representatives from the Ogeechee Riverkeeper and 100 Miles, an environmental group dedicated to protecting Georgia’s coast. Both groups, Grant indicated, favor centralized wastewater treatment systems over septic tanks and land application systems, such as sprayfields, but they have not endorsed the LCDA’s proposal. Susan Inman of 100 Miles said the organization is gathering information on the LCDA’s plans for a treatment plant.
Liberty County leaders said more wastewater capacity is needed, especially with the growth the area is experiencing and the growth that is projected to come.
“If we’re going to have economic development in unincorporated parts of the county, we need to take this step,” said Kelly Davis, attorney for the LCDA and the board of commissioners.
“If we want Liberty County to grow, we have to get on board with infrastructure,” said Liberty County Commissioner Tim Blount.
Grant also looked at the growth that is estimated to be coming to the I-95 corridor in southeast Georgia and what it could mean for Liberty County residents.
“We have an opportunity, with the leadership we have today and the circumstances in our region, for achieving economically,” she said.