Sewer Overflows
The Metropolitan Sewer District's Sewage in Basement Program:
On June 14, 2004, Federal Judge Arthur Spiegel approved the Metropolitan Sewer District’s Global Consent Decree, while adding provisions to aid Sewage In Basement Victims:
- The Court has appointed an ombudsman to MSD’s sewage in basement program so that sewage in basement victims will “obtain effective and timely assistance.”
- The Court has found that MSD is, indeed, responsible for cleanup costs, remedies, and any dimunition in the value of real estate due to a sewage backup (after January 1, 2004). This means that any property owner who experiences a sewage backup caused by the Metropolitan Sewer District is entitled to reimbursement of cleanup costs, backup prevention devices, damages, and loss of property value.
- Any release form for the MSD sewage in basement program that require victims to release any past or future claims against MSD are considered improper and found by the Court to be unenforceable. If you are apart of the MSD sewage in basement program and signed a release form prior to May 25, 2004, please contact the MSD ombudsman (Jessica Powell) to make sure you have signed the correct form .
- If MSD does not meet construction schedules for sewer system fixes, they will be subjected to stipulated penalties.
- The Sierra Club will have the opportunity to monitor MSD’s plans to improve the sewer system to make sure MSD does not continue to violate clean water laws.
- If you would like to contact the Sierra Club about the court’s order on the MSD Global Consent Decree, please call (513) 861-4001 ext. 17
DID YOU KNOW . . . ?
- The county has spent roughly $2 million in legal fees to fend
off the Sierra Club and avoid fixed dates for correcting all these
violations.
- The Sierra Club has recently funded a study that showed that
there are affordable ways of updating and fixing our sewer systems.
For copies of the study call Katie at 513.761.4003.
- Officials continue to spend millions of dollars a year on new
sprawl-inducing trunk lines while raw sewage backs up in the basement
of older neighborhoods on a regular basis because of our antiquated
age-old sewer system. We need a fix it first policy.
- Hamilton County owns the sewer system but Cincinnati operates
MSD. The shared responsibility is confusing and lacks transparency.
Why isn't the Director of MSD responsible to the city of Cincinnati
for correcting these overflows?
- MSD has known about these violations for decades. MSD has spent
huge amounts of money "studying" the overflows. These
included the SWIM report, Long Term Control Plan and many smaller
studies. They study, they promise, but they don't fix.
Additional Information
All the following links open in a new
window.
City Residents to Council: "Stop
Raw Sewage in Our Homes." 
Court
Order by US District Judge Spiegel
City
along with County held accountable for sewer fixes
PowerPoint
slide about what the Sierra Club has done so far about sewer quality 
Business Courier article "Sewer district's
bill to include property value damage"
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