Mansfield could get a new sewage plant. Mayor, residents worry about its effects | Fort Worth Report

A sewage plant is slated to be built in northwest Mansfield. But Mayor Michael Evans and residents are pushing back, citing concerns about how the treated wastewater released by the plant could affect a creek highly valued by the community.

Evans and several residents made their opposition known during a Sept. 23 public meeting held by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which regulates wastewater treatment plants in the state.

Most resident concerns stem from how the conditions of Walnut Creek — which runs from Alvarado through Mansfield and ultimately flows into Joe Pool Lake — would be “exacerbated,” Evans told the Report.

“When you say Walnut Creek, you’re saying Mansfield,” said Evans. “We love our Walnut Creek and we don’t want it to be negatively impacted.”

Evans said residents at the meeting asked whether or not Walnut Creek would be polluted by the plant. They also sought answers on whether the discharge would be treated sewage or graywater. The state environmental commission defines graywater as wastewater from washing machines, showers and sinks that does not come in contact with human waste.

In September, the state agency received an application from Dallas-based company BL 374 LLC requesting the authorization of discharging no more than 490,000 gallons of treated “effluent” — domestic or industrial wastewater — according to a public comment notice.

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The sewage plant facility would be located about 0.6 miles northeast of the intersection of Bennett Lawson and Gibson Cemetery roads in southeastern Tarrant County. The treated wastewater would be disposed of in a body of water that flows into Willow Branch and Walnut Creek.

Evans said there has not been any conversation between the plant’s developer and Mansfield officials regarding the sewage plant. Jorge Gonzalez-Rodiles, president of the civil engineering company Southland Consulting Engineers, told the Report otherwise.

His company is developing the site and is managing communication between the city and the sewage plant.

Email exchanges and close communication have been initiated between the city and the developers at Southland Consulting, Gonzalez-Rodiles said. Part of that communication included consulting a study on the disposal of the treated wastewater in Mansfield and sending reports to Mansfield officials.

“We’ve been working very closely with our staff to see alternative options, which is something we’re still looking at and still working through with (Evans’) staff,” said Gonzalez-Rodiles.

While Walnut Creek is not recreational, the body of water it flows into — Joe Pool Lake — has multiple uses, according to the environmental commission. Joe Pool Lake is designated for recreational use, high aquatic life and public water supply.

“That water (Walnut Creek) has to go somewhere. When it flows out of Walnut Creek, it flows into a larger body of water,” said Evans. “All of us are affected by that water.”

However, two professors who have studied wastewater told the Report the release of treated wastewater should have a minimal impact on Walnut Creek,

“If the treated wastewater meets the established water quality discharge standards, it should not significantly impact the receiving water bodies, including Walnut Creek,” said Xiujuan Chen, an assistant civil engineering professor at the University of Texas at Arlington.

“The primary usage of Joe Pool Lake is for municipal supply, flood control and recreation — not drinking water,” Chen said. “Thus, the quality requirements are similar with those of treated wastewater.”

Treated wastewater could be advantageous for aquatic life, said Clifford Fedler, professor at Texas Tech University’s department of civil, environmental and construction engineering.

“In many cases, natural water bodies receiving treated wastewater often benefit from the added water, especially in terms of maintaining a diverse microflora of aquatic life in the stream by keeping the flows consistent,” he said.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality puts strict limits on discharged water to ensure receiving bodies cannot be negatively impacted, Fedler said.

“The limits on the discharges across the state have been much more restrictive in the past so the TCEQ is clamping down to make sure they are properly managing discharges,” Felder said.

According to the Texas Administrative Code on surface water quality standards, existing water uses must be protected. The code also prohibits water degradation levels that exceed fishable or swimmable quality unless it can be shown to the agency that negative impacts on water quality are essential for economic or social development.

In terms of discharging sewage, the Texas Water Code prohibits the disposal of wastewater if it has not yet been treated.

The plant would be in complete compliance with the commission’s regulations on the disposal of wastewater, said Gonzalez-Rodiles.

“This would be treated water, it’d be clear water,” said Gonzalez-Rodiles. “It’s a very standard, traditional treatment plant that would actually beat all the water quality standards that are required for a discharge of this type. It definitely is not raw sewage.”

When it comes to the proposed Mansfield plant, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has determined treated wastewater that would be released by the plant would not impair receiving waters. It also determined that because there are no bodies with exceptional, high or intermediate aquatic life uses present within the stream reach, waters will not be degraded.

The agency’s executive director is preparing a written response to public comments that will be provided to all who submitted a comment, an environmental commission spokesperson said in a statement.

After the response is mailed, the public will have an additional 30 days to request a contested case hearing on the application of the sewage plant. A contested case hearing is similar to a civil trial in state district court and can take several months to resolve.

Nicole Lopez is the environmental reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at [email protected].

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by Nicole Lopez, Fort Worth Report October 21, 2024

Nicole Lopez is the environment reporter for the Fort Worth Report. She grew up in El Paso and attended the University of Texas at El Paso, where she studied multimedia journalism and creative writing.... More by Nicole Lopez