ST. LOUIS MO (KTVI-FOX2now.com) -
Raw sewage and human waste dumped into rivers? It sounds like the third world but it is happening St. Louis. The volume of human waste dumped into our rivers is astounding. Every year the outdated sewer system in St. Louis dumps 13 million gallons of raw sewage into the Mississippi River and the River Des Peres. The Metropolitan Sewer District is launching a campaign to let people know how bad the problem is and how much they have to pay to fix it.
Blue herons, mallard ducks, and raw sewage often share the River Des Peres. That's because storm water runoff and raw sewage share the same 160 year old pipes.
Lance LeComb with the Metropolitan Sewer District says, "This combined sewer system was built starting in the 1850's and into the early 20th century."
And when it rains a lot, like this month, all that runoff from the streets mixes with raw sewage and overflows. It ends up in the Mississippi or River Des Peres just like in the 19th century:
"Certainly having sewage and rainwater go into the environment in rivers and streams is not an ideal situation."
Not when it amounts to almost 600 railroad tank cars worth of human waste dumped straight into the rivers every year.
"You don't realize how much stuff just comes from the runoff in your own yard. You have your dog's waste, if you spray your garden, that all goes down into our sewers," says Bronwein Voss with Confluence Greenway.
So MSD needs to spend almost two billion dollars on top of four billion already being spent to reduce that runoff or face serious federal penalties.
"The timeline will dictate where rates go and how quickly they go. We've been very vocal and very honest that rates are going to go up," says LeComb.
Critics charge MSD has wasted tax dollars, polluted the environment, and has been a dumping ground for political hacks and patronage:
Yes, there have been transparency issues over the years. We've addressed those. A number of audits have taken place at the district to show we've changed those business practices."
And MSD now finds itself fighting not corruption so much as pollution.
Blue herons, mallard ducks, and raw sewage often share the River Des Peres. That's because storm water runoff and raw sewage share the same 160 year old pipes.
Lance LeComb with the Metropolitan Sewer District says, "This combined sewer system was built starting in the 1850's and into the early 20th century."
And when it rains a lot, like this month, all that runoff from the streets mixes with raw sewage and overflows. It ends up in the Mississippi or River Des Peres just like in the 19th century:
"Certainly having sewage and rainwater go into the environment in rivers and streams is not an ideal situation."
Not when it amounts to almost 600 railroad tank cars worth of human waste dumped straight into the rivers every year.
"You don't realize how much stuff just comes from the runoff in your own yard. You have your dog's waste, if you spray your garden, that all goes down into our sewers," says Bronwein Voss with Confluence Greenway.
So MSD needs to spend almost two billion dollars on top of four billion already being spent to reduce that runoff or face serious federal penalties.
"The timeline will dictate where rates go and how quickly they go. We've been very vocal and very honest that rates are going to go up," says LeComb.
Critics charge MSD has wasted tax dollars, polluted the environment, and has been a dumping ground for political hacks and patronage:
Yes, there have been transparency issues over the years. We've addressed those. A number of audits have taken place at the district to show we've changed those business practices."
And MSD now finds itself fighting not corruption so much as pollution.
