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Sussex officials sign outfall agreement

County will pay $22 million as its share of project
August 14, 2017

In an agreement signed Aug. 8, Sussex County will pay the City of Rehoboth Beach $22 million as its share of the upcoming $52.5 million ocean outfall project, including upgrades to the city's wastewater treatment plant.

Sussex County Council’s approval, which followed similar action from city commissioners on Aug. 7, was necessary for the project to proceed, as the county is a partner in the Rehoboth Beach project that has been nearly 20 years in the making. Construction of the outfall is expected to begin this fall and be completed by spring 2018.

The county will continue to pay Rehoboth Beach to treat wastewater from customers in Dewey Beach, Henlopen Acres and unincorporated areas around Rehoboth as well as contribute to the construction of plant upgrades. The county has provided the infrastructure for the Dewey and Henlopen Acres system since 1983.

The City, in turn, will pay the county to treat the solids portion of its waste, known as biosolids, at a future facility at the county's Inland Bays plant.

County engineer Hans Medlarz said under the agreement, Rehoboth officials have guaranteed the county will have at least 42 percent of the city's treatment plant capacity, with the chance to increase another 8 percent after one year. “Rehoboth Beach will never need more than 50 percent capacity because of its limited growth potential,” he said.

Medlarz said the agreement allows the county to ask for additional capacity beyond one year with approval from Rehoboth officials.

The agreement is the next step in the Rehoboth Beach outfall project, and the latest in a series of joint ventures, some new and others long-standing, between the county and other municipalities.

The county also has an agreement with the City of Seaford to treat wastewater in the Blades area, while the county and the Lewes Board of Public Works have worked to develop an interconnection between their two systems allowing for more flexibility in managing wastewater flow and disposal, mostly during the slow-drying winter months.

Also at its Aug. 8 meeting, county council approved a staff proposal to apply for matching planning grants for a proposed Western Sussex County Unified Sewer District for Seaford, Bridgeville and Greenwood and for a proposed Slaughter Beach sewer district.

The county has more than 70,000 wastewater customers and operates four wastewater treatment plants – Inland Bays, Piney Neck, South Costal and Wolfe Neck regional wastewater facilities.

 

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