EPA chief tours sewage problems in Alabama’s Black Belt
happening in alabama
HAYNEVILLE, Ala. (AP) – The head of the federal Environmental Protection Agency says sewage problems faced by residents of Alabama’s Black Belt are “unacceptable.”
EPA Administrator Michael Regan got a firsthand look Saturday at homes in Lowndes County where malfunctioning septic systems discharged sewage into backyards and between mobile homes.
One resident, 59-year-old Jerry Smith told Regan that rains regularly bring flooding and wastewater onto her property.
Wastewater treatment has been a problem for decades in parts of Alabama’s Black Belt, where many communities have no traditional sewer lines and septic systems don’t work well because of the region’s heavy clay soil.
Regan said funds being made available through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 could help finalize solutions.
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3/6/2022 2:32:13 PM (GMT -6:00)
