What a $2 million investment will mean in Bessemer City
In an effort to address ongoing sewer issues and prepare for growth, Bessemer City is replacing a 50-year-old sewer lift station.
In recent months, Bessemer City has experienced two large-scale sewage spills that impacted the Catawba River Basin.
Early in December, a pipe burst in Bessemer City, causing more than 60,000 gallons of untreated wastewater to drain into the river.
Following a weekend of heavy rain, another spill occurred on Jan. 9, discharging an estimated 16,000 gallons of untreated wastewater into the river, according to a press release from the city.
City Manager Josh Ross and the city’s public works Operations and Special Projects Director Jamie Ramsey say that an update to one of the city’s sewer lift stations will drastically improve the city’s sewer system.
The age and route of the current lift station puts more pressure on the lines.
To address the pressure, decrease the amount of maintenance needed in the sewer department, and consider future population growth in Bessemer City, officials will reroute the force main in addition to replacing the lift station, according to Ramsey.
Currently, wastewater must go from one lift station to another and then gets pumped out again.
The new route will take the water from one lift station directly to an outflow line that will flow directly to Gastonia, where the wastewater is treated, Ramsey said.
Additionally, the city plans to replace roughly 1,000 feet of eight-inch sewer main line in a residential area in the city.
“It’s kind of one of those projects that I would say most citizens don’t really pay too much attention to because it’s sewer, and we always talk about how utilities that are buried are not always as visible or discussed but they are very important to the city,” Ross said. “The city is going to continue to invest in that utility’s improvements.”
In a recent interview, Brandon Jones, a lead scientist and river advocate for Catawba Riverkeeper, said that aging infrastructure in cities surrounding the Catawba River Basin is one of the main issues leading to untreated wastewater making its way to the water.
Jones said population growth and aging sewer system lines are a large part of the problem.
This move by Bessemer City will be a nearly $2 million step in the right direction.
The city received a $500,000 grant to cover some of the cost, and took out a loan for the rest, according to Ramsey.
Construction on the project has already begun, and Ramsey expects that the work will be completed in six to eight months.
