WARREN, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Warren Mayor Jim Fouts and Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candice Miller on Monday called for Oakland County to reduce sewage dumping – as it can drastically impact surrounding water sources. 

Fouts issued a mayoral proclamation last week seeking the reduction of the amount of wastewater exceeding its sewage system’s capacity to hold the waste, also called combined sewage overflows (CSOs) according to The Detroit News. 

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“… More than 1 million gallons of raw sewage from 17 communities in Oakland County was discharged from the George W. Kuhn Retention Basin into the Red Run Drain in Macomb County in 2021 … with common sense knowledge that it harms water quality, the environment, property values and impacts the economy,” the mayoral proclamation said.

This fall, Warren County with the support of Miller, launched an underground infrastructure project that according to officials would lead to fewer discharges of CSOs into Lake St. Clair following storms. 

In the statement from Monday, Miller said Macomb County was “…simply asking Oakland to address their [CSOs],” as Macomb is investing millions to stop discharging CSOs. 

“If the situation was reversed and Macomb County was discharging combined sewer overflows and sometimes raw sewage into Oakland County, I’m pretty sure there would be an uproar,” Miller said in the statement.

State records as reported by the WXYZ Detroit, revealed that in 2021 alone, 383 overflow events occurred discharging a total of 46.74 billion gallons.  Nearly 38 billion gallons were treated discharge from retention treatment basins, but roughly 9 billion gallons were raw sewage.  

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“Listen it is 2022. This is our drinking water and we are discharging combined sewage overflows into Lake Saint Clair? We have to stop doing this,” Miller has said. 

The mayor has concern mostly for Lake St. Clair, which contributes millions of dollars in revenue for the area because of its outdoor recreation opportunities for Michiganders and Canadians on the other side.  

As a response, Macomb launched the American Rescue Plan Act project in October, a $9.9 million project which includes an inflatable dam that can store up to 3.5 million gallons of drainage in a storm which holds the waste long enough for the drainage system to divert the flow to a water treatment plant. 

In the past, Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Jim Nash has rejected the notion that Oakland County has contributed massive sewage leaks to surrounding water sources including Lake St. Clair.  

“In response to the resolution introduced today before the Macomb County Board of Commissioners, I find it necessary to correct some of the resolution’s erroneous allegations about the source of pollution impacting Lake St. Clair,” Nash said in a statement, “Specifically, the resolution claims that billions of gallons of discharged sewage from Oakland County have caused pollution that harms the property values and the economy of the area. That allegation is false. In fact, there is extensive evidence to the contrary, as referenced below.” 

He concluded by expressing his willingness to work with Macomb County to combat the issue of drainage. 

“I would be happy to meet with Macomb County officials to help find a regional solution,” he said, “I recognize that Lake St. Clair is a treasured asset not only for Macomb County, but for the entire region as well.”