Regional Waste Water Treatment
at Lake of the Ozarks
May 5, 2010 Waste Water Task Force MeetingApril 19, 2010 Regional WW Treatment Kick-off Meeting
See Minutes of May 5 Waste Water Task Force Meeting
Meeting of April 19, 2010
(Also see official minutes)
Introduction by Donna Swall
Speaker McCaffree's Remarks
Regional Waste Water Treatment Meeting Of April 19, 2010
Introductory Remarks by Donna Swall, LOWA Executive Director
Lake of the Ozarks Watershed Alliance, Inc.
Meeting on Regionalized Waste Water Treatment
Lodge of Four Seasons, Villiage of Four Seasons Mo
April 19, 2010
Introduction: Donna Swall
The Watershed Alliance has but one purpose To promote protection of the entire watershed
One concern is the treatment of sewage. We assembled various resources:
- Professionals
- Technical advisors
- Top scientists
- Local officials
- Federal and State Officials
- Responsible businessmen
We have had significant assistance and input from the sophisticated bond firm of Gilmore and Bell
All work pro bono with one purpose: To help the Lake Area address most responsibly The question of Public Sewage Treatment.
There are Sub-Issues:
- Which Disputes are truly Significant?
- Are we moving more slowly than we should?
- Are Opportunities being ignored?
- Is this a 20 year or of 200 year Issue?
- Should we be better coordinated?
- What should be considered that is currently overlooked?
What have we Learned:
In a Nutshell:
- We Have Learned that Reasonable People will differ -You will not find uniform agreement
- We Have Learned that the arguments that are being debated aggressively are not the questions that should control the future.
What We Should Be Addressing:
- The enduring inescapable issue is whether the lake region needs to responsibly move toward area-wide comprehensive sewage treatment and how that might be done in a manner all could support.
- There are unique problems and costs which plague engineers attempting to address sewage issues at the Lake
- The solution for partial financing at Branson may be an excellent model that should be considered here.
- Because Branson was one county, we think a cooperative effort of all four counties is essential, and infinitely more challenging.
- I'll leave details for our speaker, however we also most genuinely believe The Key Questions that might help improve the future cannot be decided by:
- politicians
- business promoters cheering squads of interest groups
- project promoters
- power brokers
- regulators, or even
- federal, state or local officials
It is an issue for the people to decide
We assemble in this room More Power, Authority, Knowledge and Experience on the questions than ever in one room at one time devoted to our problem. There is likely not a significant question that can't be addressed fully and truthfully with one person or another here today
Bill McCaffree -is an attorney who donates time to us. Many of you know him and have worked with him at one time or another He:works or has worked on projects in all four counties He works with numerous engineering firms, knows the area and people involved, maintained a second home on horseshoe bend for many years and intimately knows the area and its problems.
Bill was asked to assemble for public presentation our ideas and conclusions and to present some ideas that we think would be wisely considered.
Speaker Bill McCaffree's Remarks
Some of Mr. McCaffree's points discussed during his presentation included:
- At least eight major engineering and scientific reports over the last 40 years have consistently shown that the area geology, for the most part, is not suited to the proper functioning of septic tank systems.
- More than ten years ago, a group of Lake Area citizens banded together with local community governments to fund a major engineering report geared toward development of recommendations which would ensure continued high quality Lake water. The major recommendation of that engineering firm, HNTB Inc., was as follows: “To best serve the diverse population of the area it is likely that the most cost effective water and wastewater approach will be to use centralized systems in combination with decentralized systems. In addition, it is anticipated that a systematic management approach will be needed to ensure proper operation of the on-site wastewater systems.”
- Mr. McCaffree described this system as “hub and spokes”.
- Action toward creating a four-county, lake-wide quasi-governmental unit must commence now in order to assure future high quality water in our Lake of the Ozarks. Most highly populated areas should be highest on the priority to receive treatment.
- Cost for creation of the initial infrastructure has been estimated at upwards of $150 million. Total project completion will take many years even after funding sources are identified.
- The need for action increases yearly as baby-boomers in increasing numbers are retiring and moving to the Lake as full-time residents.
- Discussions with Missouri DNR and with EPA officials have indicated that funds from those sources will be available, at best, in only limited amounts. Furthermore, such funding related to construction of waste water infrastructure can be made only to a legally established governmental unit.
- Therefore, citizens of the area cannot expect their problem to be solved by a hand-out from the state or federal government. They must help themselves. They could fund such a project by establishment of an area-wide sales tax of 1%. Establishment of the four-county governmental unit and of the area-wide sales tax would require legislative action.
- The “haves” and the “have-nots” must, for the good of both, band together and work toward the establishment of this new governmental unit and toward the area-wide sales tax. The “haves” were described as those communities which currently do have a centralized waste water treatment facility and the “have-nots” those without facilities. The “haves” will benefit because there are citizens within their jurisdiction but outside their current system who need and want to be connected to the sewer system. This would help fund the expansion needed to accomplish that end. The “have-nots” cannot shoulder the cost burden alone since many of them are retired, on limited income, and live in more sparsely populated parts of the lake region. Furthermore, the “haves” reside where the bulk of the shopping (and therefore the source of potential sales tax income) exists even though everyone in the area, and the visitors to the area, all spend their money in those have‘s establishments. A way must be found to share the burden.
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Only the citizens can make it happen. Toward that end, those citizens who agree with the need and are passionate in their desire to protect the Lake were asked to join a task force to work toward regionalized waste water treatment around the Lake of the Ozarks. Many citizens signed up for the task force following the meeting. Any other concerned citizen in the area who wishes to be part of the task force is asked to call Donna Swall, Executive Director of the Lake of the Ozarks Watershed Alliance at (573)434-4400.
