At a Glance: Atlanta Is Largely in Compliance with Its Combined Sewer Overflow Consent Decree, but Has Not Yet Met All Requirements


U.S. Environmental Protection Agency	18-P-0206
f ¦¦ \ Office of Inspector General	May 30,2018
At a Glance
Why We Did This Project
The Office of Inspector
General (OIG) for the U.S.
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) performed
this audit based on a
congressional request to
examine the city of Atlanta's
compliance with requirements
of the 1998 Combined Sewer
Overflow (CSO) consent
decree, and EPA Region 4's
oversight of the city's consent
decree compliance.
CSOs occur when untreated
or partially treated human
and industrial waste, toxic
materials, and debris mix
with stormwater and flow
into surface waterbodies. The
consent decree also addressed
Sanitary Sewer Overflows
(SSOs), which occur when
sewage escapes sewer
systems and flows into streets
and surface waterbodies.
The consent decree directed
Atlanta to develop and
implement maintenance
programs, construct
wastewater treatment
infrastructure, and report
progress to the EPA and the
state of Georgia.
This report addresses the
following:
• Ensuring clean and safe
water.
Atlanta Is Largely in Compliance with Its
Combined Sewer Overflow Consent Decree,
but Has Not Yet Met All Requirements
Decreases in sewage
overflows from Atlanta's
wastewater treatment
facilities and sewage
transmission pipes reduce
the risk of city residents
being exposed to pathogens.
What We Found
Atlanta, Georgia, completed its CSO capital
improvement projects by 2008 and complies
with current reporting requirements, but the
city has not yet achieved all consent decree
requirements. Atlanta continues to work on
sewer system construction projects under a
1999 amendment that deals primarily with
Atlanta's sewer collection system, including the
separate portion of the sewer system. The city
has until 2027 to complete those projects.
Atlanta's CSO system continues to experience periodic violations of its National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits due to high levels of fecal
coliform, operations-related errors leading to high levels of chlorine in treated
wastewaters, and missed water quality tests. SSOs continue to occur and pose
risks to human health and the environment. Untreated household and human
waste continues to be released into city streets and surface waters during SSO
events.
EPA Region 4 coordinates with the Georgia Environmental Protection Division
(Georgia EPD) to implement the document review and inspection oversight
controls established in the consent decree. The consent decree requires Atlanta
to submit quarterly reports to EPA Region 4 and the Georgia EPD, which the city
is providing. In addition, Region 4 chairs quarterly meetings to discuss the
implementation of the consent decree with the city and the Georgia EPD. The
Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, a co-plaintiff in the case and party to the settlement,
can also attend these meetings.
Based on the results of our analysis, we have no recommendations.
Send all inquiries to our public
affairs office at (202) 566-2391
or visit www.epa.gov/oia.
Listing of OIG reports.

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