SANFORD, Fla. – Sanford’s City Commission approved authority to be given to the city manager to expedite purchases related to equipment preventing another sewage spill into Lake Monroe on Monday.
“The overflows occurred because of failures in the system,” Mayor Art Woodruff said.
In January, a sewage spill leaked 13 million gallons of partially treated sewage into Lake Monroe.
“People in Sanford were upset about it, obviously. People around Sanford. People upstream. When we have to go out and tell our neighbors we dumped some untreated water in the river and it’s coming towards them, that’s not a good thing,” Woodruff said.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection fined the city $828,000 for the spill.
However, this fine can be reduced to $128,000 if the city invests in equipment to improve the water treatment facility. The city manager is now authorized to make those necessary purchases.
“It’s definitely a priority. We do not like this happening. We’ve been working on that plant for years and have invested a lot of money into it,” Woodruff said.
The mayor did not provide a timeline for when the improvements will be completed.
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