Amid underpayment accusations from the city of Chattanooga, Walker County’s wastewater authority has begun a $23 million sewage redirection project it says will save money for ratepayers.
About 2 million gallons of Walker County sewage a day flows to Chattanooga’s Moccasin Bend wastewater facility, Walker County Water & Sewerage Authority General Manager Brandon Whitley said. The county’s sewage plant in Chickamauga processes 1 to 1 1/2 million gallons of sewage daily.
The project will redirect about a half million gallons of sewage daily from Chattanooga’s facility to the authority’s Chickamauga plant, he said.
“So this will take us to roughly two million gallons a day, and we’re designed for three and a half,” Whitley said in a phone call.
The project began about two months ago and is expected to be completed in the spring of next year, he said.