Even though the Oconee County Calls Creek wastewater plant stopped producing solids at least a year ago, the county continued to pay a company for hauling those solids to a landfill through at least the end of April of this year, according to financial records of the county’s Utility Department.
Solids, also referred to as sludge, are removed from the raw sewage in a wastewater plant as part of the treatment process and then disposed of, generally at a landfill.
Oconee County Administrative Officer Jeff Benko raised concerns about the build up of solids at the county’s Calls Creek wastewater treatment plant at least five days before problems at the plant were exposed by a citizen and nearly four weeks before consultant Bob Sheldon said solids at the plant had reached a critical stage.
Utility Department Director Chris Thomas reassured Benko that “I think everything is ok as far as sludge goes” at the plant.
The Oconee County Board of Commissioners tonight is scheduled to continuing its discussion of how to spend the 3 percent set aside in the current Fiscal Year 2016 county budget for salary increases for county employees.
The Board will not be discussing the salaries of its members.
The Georgia Environment Protection Division detected no problems with the quality of water discharged from Oconee County’s two wastewater treatment facilities during the September 2013 to April 2015 period, even though the agency criticized the county for “serious violations” of its permits to operate the plants during that time.
An Oconee County historic and scenic sites committee on Tuesday night is scheduled to make its recommendation that the county spend Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax revenue on preservation of the historic Barnett Shoals area along the Oconee River and on renovation of the old jail behind the Courthouse in Watkinsville.
The Committee—actually a subcommittee of the Recreational Affairs Committee and of the Cultural Affairs and Tourism Committee—will make its report to those two full committees at 6 p.m. at the Community Center in Oconee Veterans Park.
Atlanta Developer Frank Bishop filed paperwork with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers late last month for Phases II and III of Epps Bridge Centre, to be built in the wooded area across the Oconee Connector from his existing shopping center.
Bishop filed the paperwork with the Corps of Engineers because he plans to alter streams and wetlands on the property and needs permits from both the state of Georgia and from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers before he can begin construction.
The Oconee County Code Enforcement Office is once again investigating a two-sided sign installed by Boswell Properties on the southwest corner of SR 316 and the Oconee Connector.
Boswell Properties reinstalled the signs sometime in the last few weeks to list property owned by Maxie Price, the Loganville auto dealer and businessman who has several properties in the county.
