Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District Public Meeting

press release: A community discussion about mitigating the impacts of extreme weather, the importance of pollution prevention and the need to reinvest in the region’s water infrastructure takes place Wednesday, March 20, from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District’s Maintenance and Training Facility.

To help prioritize efforts and develop community-oriented solutions, Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District will lead the discussion with elected officials, public works leaders and interested residents from its 26 customer communities as well as regional stakeholders. Following the meeting, the district will offer tours of its Nine Springs Wastewater Treatment Plant.

District tours feature an inside look at the struvite harvesting facility, which last year captured a record volume of phosphorus from the wastewater stream and produced 719.4 tons of struvite fertilizer for export out of the watershed. Other highlights include an overview of the district’s biogas production technology, which captures energy from the wastewater treatment process and converts it to electricity for use at the plant.

“We have a number of critical topics to discuss including the importance of reducing stormwater infiltration and inflow into the regional sanitary sewer system, the need to manage chloride loading from home water softeners and road salt and the outlook for significant infrastructure investments to maintain reliability,” said Michael Mucha, the district’s chief engineer and director. “We’re eager to learn more about the priorities and perspectives of our customer communities to help establish a shared path forward.”

Prior to the meeting, which is free and open to the public, community members with an interest in water quality and regional infrastructure issues are encouraged to complete a brief (4 minutes) online survey to help inform the discussion. TAKE SURVEY

To register for the meeting, RSVP HERE. The link contains a spot to register for tours following the meeting. Those who are interested in taking the walking tour, which will run from 60 to 90 minutes, should wear weather appropriate clothing and comfortable shoes. More information is available by visiting madsewer.org and searching “customer and community meetings.”

ABOUT THE DISTRICT

Established in 1930 to protect the lakes and streams of the upper Yahara watershed, Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District today serves 26 Madison area customer communities covering some 184 square miles and 380,000 people. The district owns and operates 141 miles of pipe and 18 regional pumping stations that convey approximately 41 million gallons of wastewater to the Nine Springs Wastewater Treatment Plant each day. Organized as a municipal corporation, the district is a leader in sustainability and resource reclamation; its rates are established by the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District Commission.