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Grand Traverse County DPW highlights PFAS sampling plan, septage finances and infrastructure needs
Summary
DPW Director Carberg told commissioners the department operates several township water/sewer systems, is proposing a two-year PFAS sampling study to identify sources that exceeded land-application limits, and plans a five-year capital program for the septage treatment facility funded by user fees.
Director Carberg reviewed the Department of Public Works' scope, funding and operations and told the county board the department manages water and sewer distribution for five townships and operates a septage treatment facility (STF).
Carberg said the department administers three self-supporting funds: Fund 590 (department operations, roughly $11 million initial budget shared across cost centers), Fund 597 (STF, just under $1.8 million initial budget), and Fund 697 (a small Hawk Road facility fund). He presented a five-year capital expense forecast of about $3.5 million for the STF to keep that facility functioning and self-sustaining via user fees.
On PFAS, Carberg said monitoring has identified elevated concentrations that at times exceeded land-application limits for biosolids. The department seeks a grant to support a two-year repeated sampling study to trace PFAS sources and inform management actions such as source exclusion or coordination with municipal pretreatment programs. "We monitor PFAS now," he said, noting spikes over the summer had pushed the plant above land-application thresholds.
Carberg described how special waste (for example, brewery waste) is handled case-by-case and said typical PFAS inputs are more likely to be from specific industrial users; the PFAS grant aims to clarify those inputs. He also told commissioners the STF is funded by hauler payments (roughly 18 cents per gallon) and that a rate study is in process to preserve fund balance while keeping fees attainable for residents.
Commissioners asked about long-range coordination with township master plans and opportunities to regionalize planning; Carberg said planning currently starts at the township level but the Board of Public Works can support coordination. He also noted a $12 million force-main project with Acme and East Bay townships as an example of planned infrastructure investment.
Next steps: the department will pursue the PFAS sampling grant, continue the STF rate study, and work with townships and county administration on longer-range planning.
