GROUND WATER VS. SEWER WATER
BY Bob Evans, Simonton Lake Conservancy Board President
As you know, the Simonton Lake Conservancy manages the sewer system around the lake. The sewer system is designed to take wastewater from our homes through underground pipes and sent to the City of Elkhart wastewater facility. We pay the city for this service.
WHAT ABOUT RAINWATER?
During one recent summer rain storm 3.5 inches of rain was recorded at the lake which is great for the lawns and the lake level but not so great for crawl spaces and basements. Homeowners’ sump pumps were running at peak rate for several hours to keep the runoff water out of those crawl spaces and basements. Hopefully, the sump pumps performed as expected.
IS OUR SEWER SYSTEM TAKING IN RAINWATER?
We are fortunate that our Simonton Lake Low Pressure sewer system is a sealed system. Rain, runoff, and snow melt are not able to enter the sewer, EXCEPT for runoff water that enters the sewer system through sump pumps that are connected to the in-house drainpipe going to your grinder pump.
IN-HOME RUNOFF GOING INTO THE SEWER
So, many of us whose in-house systems are designed this way are pumping run off into the sewer system. It is being sent off to the city as if it was wastewater. And the city is charging us!
JULY STORM
During that rain storm mentioned, there was a substantial increase in flows to the city. The daily average flows from our system are around 66,000 gallons of wastewater. But during that storm a total of over 200,000 gallons of water was sent to the city. This means that 134,000 gallons of rainwater was piped to the city for treatment.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR OUR USERS AND OUR SYSTEM?
The City of Elkhart charges the Simonton Lake Conservancy District for each gallon of wastewater sent in for treatment. The pumping of runoff water into a grinder pump adds additional cost as well as wear of our lift station equipment. It is the mission of the Simonton Lake Conservancy District to keep costs down as much as possible. This will be difficult as the city raised its rates in July of 2024 and will increase this rate annually over a period of five years. (This is due to a federal mandate to update their treatment facilities.)
WHAT DAN I DO?
If sump pumps that are connected to in-house plumbing are disconnected and diverted to the exterior of your home onto lawns areas away from the house, this will reduce the flow during rain events and help reduce costs.
If there is a concern whether your sump pump is connected to your grinder cost, the SLCD can help with what to look for. New homes built on the lake can be plumbed so that rainwater is kept out of the sewer.
