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Magnolia Water outlines investments in Lafourche sewer systems, defends rate hikes after residents report spills and billing shocks
Summary
Magnolia Water told the Lafourche Parish Council it has invested roughly $23.5 million to rehabilitate local sewer systems and moved to fully insourced operations; council members and residents pushed back over sharp bill increases, customer service delays and an alleged sewage spill that killed fish in a retention pond.
Magnolia Water representatives told the Lafourche Parish Council on May 12 that the company has bought and upgraded dozens of local sewer systems since entering Louisiana in 2019 and has transitioned all operations in‑house to improve accountability.
"Since 2019 Magnolia has spent about $23½ million in Lafourche Parish buying wastewater systems and upgrading them," said Steve Ernst, identified for the record as a Magnolia Water representative, adding that Magnolia restored many systems to regulatory compliance and that most of their local systems received A grades from the state health department. Ernst and Scott Olman, Magnolia’s vice president for operations in the area, described a recent shift from contract operators to Magnolia employees that they said would improve responsiveness.
Council…
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