How spring storms can impact the James River

RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) -Spring and summer storms bring downpours. So much that it can overwhelm Richmond’s 150-year-old Combined Sewer Overflow system, emptying untreated waste into creeks and streams.

So, what’s a Combined Sewer Overflow system? Long story short, it’s when stormwater and wastewater share the same pipes. It’s like this in many of America’s oldest cities.

At first, there was no public wastewater system for generations. When people went to the bathroom, they went to outhouses. They didn’t worry too much about sanitation.

It wasn’t until the 1800s that homes started sending their waste into the sewer system. That went untreated into local waterways. Back then, “dilution was the solution.” They thought the rivers would be fine.

But they weren’t. It wasn’t safe to swim in the river, the animals suffered, and it got really bad after the rain. When that first pulse of stormwater emptied the sewers, it pushed untreated wastewater into the river.

“It’s not a good idea to put bacteria in our rivers. Let’s stop doing that,” Grace LeRose with Richmond’s Department of Utility said.

She says the city got serious about the problem when it built a treatment plant in the 1970s. That made a huge difference as now, on a regular day, all of the city’s wastewater gets treated.

It’s a fantastic process to see up close.

The first step is removing trash and other solids, Then various nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous; as you walk down the line, you can see and smell the water getting cleaner.

The last step is a UV light treatment that kills bacteria. The water they release isn’t quite fit to drink, but it’s close!

In 1983, The city built the “Shockoe Retention Basin.” It’s enormous, underground on Chappel Island and can hold 50 million gallons until the treatment plant catches up. But it’s not perfect.

But big storms can still overload the plant. The following steps are fueled by technology and 50 million dollars of state money.

“We’ve been doing this since 2017,” LeRose. “We were the first in the Commonwealth kind of technology. Richmond is really in this area here. We were the first to put these in our system.”

With real-time monitoring of the sewers, DPU has found more spots that can hold wastewater before it goes to the plant. Right now, 91 to 92 percent get treated. LeRose thinks they can bring it to 98% by installing gates to hold back water in these overflows and then releasing it to the plant later.

“And so this is, this is our legacy. This is what we think is the most important thing to do is clean that river, protect the health of Richmond residents, and make sure that it stays healthy for the next generation,” LeRose said. “This is where we treat wastewater and stormwater. This is rainwater and water from people’s homes, and the hope is that more of that water is treated, leaving a healthier river for everyone to enjoy.”

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