Danielsville hears from citizens regarding sewage spill

That spill, which was discovered off Colbert-Danielsville Road and Madison Street Nov. 13, also left fecal matter in a private pond.

And Mosley Drive residents, who were affected by the spill, presented the city council with a letter citing their concerns about possible future spills.

“Our biggest concern other than the long-term impact of 200,000 gallons of waste water being flushed into our family lake is the possibility of a re-occurrence of this situation in the future,” stated the letter from Mosley Drive residents John and Dot Wood, along with Andy and Carol Wood. “We understand that accidents will occur. We do not understand how something like a waste water accident can go undetected for almost two weeks.”

The Woods said the property has been in the family for four generations. They said they understand that there is no way to fully gauge the destruction of the spill “without having water and environmental tests conducted prior to this situation.”

“Needless to say, that the knowledge of this spill will taint the taste and appeal of any fish that may be harvested from the lake for years to come,” the Woods said.

The family said they have “investigated our options regarding the damage that 200,000 gallons of waste water will cause our stream and lake.”

“It seems impractical to attempt to clean up the creek without completely draining and excavating the lake,” the Woods said. “We are not content with our options and are still investigating our rights regarding this matter.”

They added that they would like to be kept informed about any preventive steps the city may take.

“We would like to be informed of all proactive steps that are hopefully being put into action in order to avoid this situation ever happening again,” the Woods said.

The family noted the close proximity of large trees to the sewage pipe and suggested that the roots from neighboring trees could have interfered with the pipe.

“…It’s hard to understand how else a pipe in this remote location would suddenly fail, especially with such large trees in close proximity,” the letter said.

City maintenance staff member Scott Anglin told the Woods that the spill area is being closely monitored, noting that weekly tests are being conducted 100 feet below and above the spill site. He said the city is checking the area daily and that water quality readings have not been bad.

City officials noted that the sewage line was installed sometime in the 1980s and that the exact whereabouts of a portion of the sewage line are not known, since there are apparently no old documents showing the location. They agreed to seek help from past city officials and employees in determining exactly where part of the line is. They agreed to do what they can to prevent future spills.

“I would like for this not to ever happen again,” council member Junne Temple told the Woods.