Signal Mountain area residents encouraged to have sewer lines inspected through Hamilton County service program

A sewer line leaks into the yard at a Big Ridge Estates in Rossville.
A sewer line leaks into the yard at a Big Ridge Estates in Rossville.

With all the recent rain, Signal Mountain officials are encouraging area residents who think there may be a problem with their sewer lines to have them inspected through the Hamilton County Water and Wastewater Treatment Authority's Private Lateral Service Program.

The PSLP is available to the entire WWTA coverage area, including Lookout Mountain, East Ridge, Red Bank, Soddy-Daisy and Ooltewah, in addition to Signal Mountain, said Alisha Francois, project coordinator for WWTA. The cost is already included in residents' WWTA sewer bill.

Repairs made to lateral, or private, lines are covered through the PSLP if they are between 5 feet from the home and the right-of-way of the road. Issues inside the home or underneath the structure are not covered, Francois said.

The program was initiated roughly a decade ago to address I&I - or inflow (what drains and toilets produce) and infiltration (places where pipes leak and stormwater gets in) - from residential and commercial sewer line connections. To test for issues, a small camera is inserted into the line or, in dry weather, smoke bombs can be set off within the line to reveal cracks or holes.

If your toilet bubbles when you flush it, especially on the lower level of your home when it's raining, that's one of the signs that everything's not flowing properly outside of your house, said Signal Mountain Mayor Dan Landrum.

"But that free thing [lateral inspection and repair] might go away," he said. "I think people need to know that."

Town Manager Boyd Veal, who serves as the town's representative on the WWTA board, said fellow board members are considering lowering the monthly maintenance fee implemented in 2009 to cover the cost of the PSLP from $8 to $2. Though monthly service fees are expected to rise 8-10 percent over the next decade as the WWTA prepares for $245 million in upgrades across the system, according to WWTA board Chairman Mike Moon.

The sewer authority has quietly been working for years with state and federal agencies to address overflow issues resulting from I&I. The WWTA has acknowledged it is now negotiating terms of a consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Justice and Tennessee authorities after years of Clean Water Act violations and millions of gallons of sewage spilled into local creeks and streams.

In 2007, after environmental regulations were repeatedly violated, the town of Signal Mountain was placed on a sewer moratorium, though in the past, when improvements were made to lateral lines via the PSLP, new sewer connections were occasionally granted, said Veal.

"That program basically isn't working that way any longer," Veal said, explaining that, while the WWTA will continue to respond to emergency situations on lateral lines, their focus is now shifting to major projects to fix the system as a whole. "I think it's going to be much harder now to get those occasional approvals than it has been in the past."

People who believe they have a problem with their lateral line should call the WWTA at 209-7842 Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., or call 209-6408 after hours.

Staff writer Judy Walton contributed to this story.

Email Emily Crisman at ecrisman@timesfreepress.com.

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