EPD Orders Notice of Sanitary Sewer Spill

The following spill notice is being posted in compliance with a directive this week by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, according to officials with the Toccoa Utilities Department. All issues at the Toccoa Creek plant resulting from the heavy rainfall in May have been fixed and no action on the part of the public is required.

NOTICE OF SANITARY SEWER SPILL

At approximately 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 29th, 2018, Toccoa Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant operators noticed that the Toccoa Creek WWTP was experiencing hydraulic overloading. This hydraulic overloading of said plant caused solids to exit the plant.

According to the flow chart, the surge flow continued for another hour at which time it slowed. Flow peaked again around 12 p.m. and continued until around 3:30 p.m. The overflow amount was approximately 25,000 gallons.

The overflow entered Toccoa Creek, which is a tributary to the Tugaloo River and Lake Hartwell. There are no known water intake points within twenty miles of the spill.

Approximately 2.3 inches of rain fell within a couple of hours over the coverage area of the Toccoa Creek WWTP. This heavy rain combined with the ground saturation caused the hydraulic overload at the treatment plant. All equipment was in operation.
The contact person is Harry Scott, Utilities Director of the City of Toccoa: landline telephone number is 706-282-3305. All appropriate notices have been posted. If required, the testing regimen will be started as soon as possible, as well as public media notification.