Community Group Calls for Increased Regulator Oversight of the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD)

Cincinnati, Ohio – Frustrated by fighting over the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) between the City of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Communities United For Action (CUFA) turned to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) for help with sewer issues.

CUFA Board Member Erica Johnson opened the November 9 meeting, “We’ve convened this public forum because our neighborhoods are being left behind in the plans to fix the sewers. We are more than a billion dollars into this project and not only are people struggling financially, they are struggling with damage to their homes and lives.” CUFA highlighted sewer issues in Bond Hill, Muddy Creek, Covedale, and the Ludlow Run Watershed area of Northside.

CINCINNATI - After years of delayed sewer fixes caused by infighting between the City of Cincinnati and Hamilton County over the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) ordered the City and County to move forward with plans they agreed to a decade ago.

Are you tired of high sewer rates and overflowing sewers?

Our sewer bills have increased 234% since 2000. The Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati (MSD) has been collecting our hard earned money since 2006 to spend it on a $3.2 billion dollar project called Project Groundwork. Project Groundwork is the response to a consent decree from the EPA (Environmental Projection Agency) after MSD’s Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) were found to be in violation of the Clean Water Act.

Hamilton County’s sewer system is almost 100 years old and not engineered to meet the needs of our increased population. When it rains too hard, CSOs overflow and mix raw sewage with groundwater which floods residents' basements and backyards. This project is designed to stop sewage overflows and clean up our rivers and streams. However, thousands of residents are still dealing with sewage backups and MSD doesn't have a plan for Phase II of the project to resolve overflows.

Communities United For Action has proposed the People's Sewer Justice Platform as a solution for systemic changes to make MSD more transparent and accountable and our sewers affordable for everyone. 

In our campaign for #sewerjustice, CUFA has:

• Stopped new rate increases since 2015
• Won a customer assistance program for low-income senior homeowners
• Won a new reporting dashboard detailing Project Groundwork project information and finances
• Won and extension of the 24-hour reporting requirement for sewer backups to 48 hours.
• Won funding to fix sewer overflows in Northside's Ludlow Run area.

Resources:

Meet our Sewer Justice team. Our Sewer Justice Team meets on first Saturdays at 10AM. Contact CUFA to register for an upcoming meeting.

Download a one-pager about our Sewer Justice program

Watch: Sewer Backup Program 101 with Legal Aid 

Watch: Stormwater Management 101

Hamilton County's Impervious Surface Fee Stakeholder Working Group meeting resources:

Meeting 1: September 23, 2020

Meeting 2: December 10, 2020

Meeting 3: June 10, 2021

Take Action for Sewer Justice

For Individual Supporters

Tell your state legislators we need expanded sewer bill assistance.

Send an email to the Hamilton County Commissioners to show your support for Fair Sewer Rates.

For Organizational Supporters

For organizations, churches, businesses and community groups: Endorse the demands of the Fair Sewer Rates Coalition.

Vickie Jackson, Bond Hill resident and CUFA Member said, "They [MSD] did not take ownership of [my] sewer backup. We continue to have sewer backups. We did not know about the sewer backup prevention program. They're playing off of our ignorance. It's not getting better the way things are going now. I think the only way we will get ourselves out of this is to keep working with CUFA."

"Being newly retired from the University of Cincinnati, I felt that I needed to start tracking how I was spending my money. I noticed that my water usage was small, but my sewer usage was 2 and a half, almost three times what my water bill was," said Wanda Ball, College Hill resident and CUFA Member. "It just amazed me how I could have such a high bill and there's only one person living here. At that point, that was when I decided this was something I needed to protest. What I have learned is ugly. It began to make me question the system."  

CUFA Board Member Elder Donell Raglin said, "We had water in the basement not quite to your knees, but close. The sewage damaged a lot of personal items we had in the basement. It was terrible; everything was a disaster. MSD came in and said what they would do, [but] as of today, they haven't done anything. They made a lot of promises they didn't keep. CUFA, they've been like a life-saver and I would say, don't walk, run to CUFA." Elder Raglin experienced more sewer backups and has since moved. 

"Communities United For Action is a way to participating in communities that were effected by sewer backups," said Florence Miller, East Clifton resident and CUFA Member. "Three feet of sewer water in the basement and the garage is nothing you want to deal with. I want MSD to be responsible for maintaining the system and fixing the system, so these sewer backups don't happen."

"I work hard for my money, and I want to see it put to good use," said Jess Enzor. "That certainly hasn't been the case with the Metropolitan Sewer District."

"In case you aren't paying attention, your sewage is much higher than the water that you are using," said CUFA Member Jeremiah Squire. "I'm on a fixed income. With the Duke bill, there's the PIPP program; for water there's no kind of program. You either pay it, or they're going to cut you off." 

"We've had 6 to 8 [sewer] backups, four very substantial backups of several feet. They [the Metropolitan Sewer District] have come out on several occasions. They've basically told us they have no solution," said Sue Bilz, Coverdale resident and CUFA Member.