news-record.com

THOMASVILLE (MCT) — The Thomasville City Council on Monday night appropriated $141,500 to pay for costs related to the recent sewer spill of 15.93 million gallons.

As part of a list of actions to reduce the risk of future spills, the city will pay $17,500 for legal services and $89,000 for maintenance and construction engineering.

The city also will pay for $35,000 of fines and penalties for sewer spills.

Earlier this month, the city of Thomasville said it would hire Pease and Associates Consulting Engineers to analyze the city's sewer collection system and prioritize rehabilitation needs.

The city also hired Brown and Caldwell, an environmental consulting firm, to review city records and other data to investigate the size, causes, duration and any environmental impact, including any impact to High Rock Lake and its tributaries.

The law firm of Brooks Pierce also will investigate the handling of the spill.

The untreated wastewater, which began July 13 and ended Aug. 4, went into North Hamby Creek in the Yadkin/Pee Dee River Basin, which flows into High Rock Lake. City officials have said the spill happened as a result of a collapsed manhole, possibly during or after a rainstorm on July 13.

Yadkin Riverkeeper Dean Naujoks initiated a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency criminal investigation after he received a tip from a Thomasville Wastewater Treatment Plant employee who claimed plant officials intentionally underreported the spill totals to the media.

According to City Manager Kelly Craver, the EPA made Thomasville employees recalculate an amount of 385,000 gallons of raw sewage that was initially reported by the city Aug. 4 to the Division of Water Quality.