Assembly picks septage plant location

PALMER — Site selection for a proposed $22-million sailed through the Mat-Su Borough Assembly as a consent item without opposition, but construction of the facility would be funded is still unknown.

The decision to locate the plant adjacent to the existing landfill was approved as part of the assembly’s consent agenda June 24. Locating the site there was largely a foregone conclusion after soil analysis showed the location was much more suitable for the project.

Project manager Mike Campfield said the borough is now looking at alternative funding mechanisms for the facility.

“It’s going to go in the southwest corner of the landfill, basically,” he said. “Where we are gonna get the money is still somewhat up in the air, but we have plans.”

Among the first decisions the borough assembly faces: whether or not to approve a $5-million loan from the Department of Environmental Conservation for some portion of the cost of the design phase of the wastewater and leachate plant.

“Right now, $5 million should be more than enough to do the design,” he said.

Borough officials began looking for a location to build the treatment plant after the Municipality of Anchorage said it would consider limiting or restricting out-of-municipality flow over concerns about a type of environmental discharge permit which waives some kinds of treatment typically required before discharging wastewater into a marine environment.

“They have not said they are going to cut us off at any time, but they have told us they are concerned about the long-term viability of their plant,” Campfield said. “The less outside wastewater they can have in their system is better for them in the long run.”

“We’re just preparing for the eventuality for when it’s coming,” he said. “When it’s coming, we’d rather not wait and find out. We’d rather take responsibility for our own systems and our own wastewater.”

Other potential funding sources include the federal U.S. Department of Agriculture project though the term and interest rates for the federal and state loans vary considerably. A longer-term loan means lower individual payments but more interest paid, while a shorter term loan means less interest paid, but steeper monthly payments. The rough outline officials are looking at would provide a 20-year term at about 1.5 percent interest, a steep discount under the interest rates likely in the private sector, Campfield said.

Officials and septage haulers have generally said any savings would likely be gained in less wear and tear on equipment and less time spent hauling collected wastewater from the Mat-Su Borough into the Municipality of Anchorage for disposal. Other hauling companies say they think any savings in terms of reduced commute, fuel, and labor rates will likely be offset by increased dumping fees.

Among the first decisions on the wastewater and leachate treatment plant is a loan from the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

“We’re preliminarily approved,” he said. “We’re kind of in our financial planning for it.”

Planning remains in the very preliminary phases, Campfield said.

“We did the general, initial cut at the finances, to see if this is even in the realm of possibility, and it looks good, it looks like it makes financial sense to do this,” he said.

Contact Brian O’Connor at 352-2269, brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com, or on Twitter @reporterbriano.