The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is building a three-mile sewer line underneath the city of Ladue to address overflow problems in the area.
The $62.5 million project, which began in September, is being constructed along Deer Creek in St. Louis County. The work will help the utility comply with a $4.7 billion consent decree from a 2012 Clean Water Act lawsuit.
Workers are building a 2.6-mile trunk sewer to help prevent sewer overflows when it rains, said Rebecca Losli, a program manager for MSD.
“Sewer surcharging can lead to basement backups, and it can also lead to overflows to the environment,” Losli said. “That diluted sanitary flow is a source of pollution to our creeks.”
The planned sewer line extends from an area near Ladue Horton Watkins High School to where Overbrook Drive crosses over Two Mile Creek. MSD plans to eliminate seven sewage outflow sites.
The project is funded by a $38.6 million loan from the Environmental Protection Agency and a $24 million loan from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
“Water and wastewater systems are essential infrastructure that support the health and economic vitality of a community,” Missouri DNR Director Carol Comer said in a press release.
The work is expected to be completed by spring 2024. The sewer line will be connected to the four-mile Deer Creek Sanitary Tunnel that the utility began building last year.
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