The
League of Women Voters of Charlottesville Albemarle
have held their third Treva Cromwell Memorial Lecture on the subject Dirty Waters? Where’s the Dirty Water Going? Why Should I Care? About three dozen people attended and got a quick lesson on how the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority and the City of Charlottesville are planning for upgrades to the area’s sewer infrastructure.
Tom Frederick, Executive Director of the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, outlined efforts to upgrade the wastewater process to help clean up downstream waters and the Chesapeake Bay. That includes a $41.4 million upgrade to Moores Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant to reduce the number of nutrients released into the Rivanna River. Frederick’s presentation includes a basic biology lesson to explain how Virginia’s wastewater treatments are the focus of efforts to reduce pollution in the Bay.
Lauren Hildebrand, Utilities Director for the City of Charlottesville, explained efforts to stop inflow and infiltration of the City’s sewer lines. Excessive rainfall can overload the sewer system, in some cases exceeding a treatment plant’s capacity. Efforts to close some of the holes are included in the $26.7 million the City will spend on repairing its aging pipes.
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These forums are being held in the memory of Treva and Howard
Cromwell, a pair of school-teachers who moved to the area in the 1970’s
who became active in water quality issues through the League’s Natural
Resources Committee. Treva Cromwell served for seven years on the
Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, and was the only woman to ever serve
as Chair. Previous forums have been on
groundwater
and the
area’s aging water and sewer infrastructure
.
Sean Tubbs
