Iowa DNR News
Environmental Services Division
 
For immediate release                                                                              August 14, 2008
 
PLUGGED AND BROKEN LINES RESULT IN BYPASS OF SEWAGE INTO IOWA RIVER
 
IOWA CITY – Two pipes that carry wastewater under the Iowa River to the treatment plant were discovered to be either plugged or partially plugged on Thursday resulting in untreated sewage being released into the river. A third pipe, believed to be damaged during the recent flooding, has a 40-foot section missing.
 
Sewage that normally flows through pipes was expected to be bypassed into the river from two to six hours on Thursday afternoon and early evening to allow for the repairs to be made. An estimated total of 100,000 to 120,000 gallons of sewage was expected to be bypassed into middle of the Iowa River north of the Iowa Avenue Bridge during the repair work. The severed pipe has been plugged, but bypassing needed to be done to prevent sewage from backing up into homes and businesses.
 
Equipment is being put in place to pump sewage across the river into another manhole that returns to the waste water treatment plant. Once lines have been set up to pump across the river, the city plans to remove the blockage from the two intact lines to restore flow and stop the bypass.  The line with missing pipe will have to be replaced. Additional by-passing is not anticipated once the two intact lines are unplugged.
 
For more information, contact Kevin Baskins at 515-249-2814.
 
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Kevin Baskins
Communications Bureau Chief
Iowa Department of Natural Resources
515-281-8395
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