FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 22, 2000
GREASE LEADS TO SEWER SPILL
CARY, NC – Another grease buildup caused a sanitary sewage spill near Ivy Creek Town Homes on Blackbird Court in Cary this weekend. Approximately 2,000 gallons of untreated waste escaped from a manhole and reached an unnamed tributary that empties to Kildaire Lake; no fish kill has been observed. Repair crews, who were called to the scene around 6:00 PM Friday evening by an observant citizen, unplugged the clogged line, installed a temporary dam to keep the waste from traveling downstream, limed and flushed the affected area, and pumped the waste back into the municipal system. No waste reached Kildaire Lake.
To decrease such incidents, the Town of Cary in 1998 established a Pretreatment Program designed to work with property owners to reduce the amount of fats, oils, and greases that are dumped each year into the municipal sewer system. While the program has thus far focused on commercial establishments since they produce a higher proportion of the problem, Town officials are working to educate all sewer customers on the dangers of dumping grease. Information about Cary’s Pretreatment Program can be found on the Town’s website,
www.townofcary.org.The Clean Water Act adopted last summer by the State Legislature requires a news release be issued by public works operators whenever a wastewater spill of 1,000 gallons or greater reaches surface waters.
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PRIMARY CONTACTS: |
Mike Bajorek, Public Works Division Director, 469-4093 |