JOHN COFFELTEditor

According to the state, the City of Manchester recently completed requirements under an Agreed Order with the Department of Environment and Conservation dating back to Aug. 28, 2014.

According to TDEC Deputy Communications Director Kim Schofinsk, The city has completed the requirements contained within the order.

If the city reports greater than five overflows at any point in the collection system, the city will automatically go on a self-imposed moratorium, which is a requirement of its permit.

“TDEC plans to continue to monitor the system closely over the next year to gather additional data on how their corrective actions have impacted the system overall,” Schofinsk said.

The order prohibited the city to “make no further connections or allow increased flows to any portion of the sewage collection system, above which six or more overflows have occurred within the proceeding 12-month period, except to those currently under construction or which the (city) is legally committed.”

This moratorium was to remain in effect until modified by TDEC.

At any time, the city was allowed to submit a written request for partial or total relaxation of the order.

City Attorney Craig Johnson said that since 2014 when the order began, “the city has grown tremendously, and has made great strides to improve its sewer system. Unfortunately, COVID-19 and a contractor bankruptcy extended the City’s planned remediation efforts.”

Johnson said the Board of Mayor and Alderman along with the Manchester Water and Sewer Department have lead a “concentrated effort” during recent years to accomplish as much as possible and have some significant goals.

“The crews at the MWSD have worked overtime, reducing inadvertent storm-water run-off and replacing lots of old sewer lines and manholes,” he said.

“We still have work to do, but effectively, we can now get back to our own governance, while living within the directives in our NPDES permit,” Johnson added. “We will have to continue to monitor and reduce overflows and continue to improve old manholes and sewer lines, reduce (inflow and infiltration), and make other improvements to maintain our sewer system and keep it flowing under capacity.”

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.