Public works reports progress on water and wastewater consent orders; 9 wastewater milestones remain

Ingrid, a program manager in Public Works, briefed the Infrastructure Task Force on the status of the city’s water and wastewater consent orders and related projects.

Ingrid told the committee the water consent order, issued after a major water-main break, was completed and closed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) on Oct. 18, 2024. The wastewater consent order first became effective Sept. 27, 2017, was amended Oct. 12, 2020, and currently has a scheduled completion date in late 2026. "We completed and closed [the water consent order] with FDEP on October 18, 2024," Ingrid said.

Staff reported they have completed 68 consent-order milestones for wastewater work and have nine remaining milestones to finish before the consent-order obligations are satisfied. Projects include force-main replacements, pump-station upgrades, mapping and an asset-management rollout, installation of four permanent generators at wastewater plants, condition assessments, smoke testing of laterals, and I&I (inflow and infiltration) reduction work. A large force-main break (a 54-inch pipe) was addressed and investigators determined a contractor punctured the pipe; the city has met with the contractor and FDEP about that incident.

Financing and schedule: Committee members said the first financing tranche to address wastewater requirements used an enterprise bond that raised roughly $200 million; that bond money (plus capital funds) has largely been committed and encumbered against projects. Staff said some in-kind projects (stormwater and restoration work) were accepted by FDEP in lieu of paying certain fines or penalties; those projects were already planned and were accelerated to meet consent-order negotiations.

Operational work and standards: As part of the water consent order, staff stated the city will exercise 20% of the city’s water valves each year (a City policy now) to ensure valves are operable and can be used to isolate breaks. Public Works reported mapping of the water mains and valves has been completed and is being integrated into the CityWorks asset-management system.

I&I and monitoring: Staff said the city is continuing smoke testing and other I&I work across sewer basins; a consultant is compiling basin priorities and work plans. Staff said earlier I&I interventions have begun to show reductions in pump-run times and flows at treatment plants, a proxy the city uses to assess benefit from I&I work. The city also reported ongoing semiannual reports to FDEP and regular project management meetings with contractors.

Overflows and reporting: The committee reviewed a December incident log of sewer-station events; the list included several sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) reported to FDEP. Committee members and staff discussed causes—aging pipe, contractor strikes, grease blockages and illegal connections—and noted every SSO must be reported regardless of size. Committee members asked for continued transparency and regular metrics showing spill volumes and locations.

Public and interagency input: After the Public Works briefing, Julieta Hayla of the South Florida Water Management District offered the district’s coordination services for storm and canal operations during heavy events. "We do have communications with local drainage districts and the county, and during emergencies we coordinate movement of water to reduce local flooding," she said, and offered to provide a follow-up presentation about the district’s role.

Ending: Staff asked for time to return with a more detailed I&I methodology and schedule at a future meeting and said they will seek extensions from FDEP when required; the committee requested a follow-up presentation that will include the I&I consultant’s methodology, milestone mapping and project sequencing.