Investigation of wastewater overflow in St. Francois Co. - KFVS12 News & Weather Cape Girardeau, Carbondale, Poplar Bluff

Investigation of wastewater overflow in St. Francois Co.

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JEFFERSON CITY, MO (KFVS) -  The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is investigating the release of an undetermined amount of wastewater from a pump station in Bismarck into a tributary that flows into the Flat River Creek in St. Francois County.

City public works officials notified the department Wednesday morning that one of the city's main sewage lift stations had failed, causing wastewater to back up into a retention basin and eventually overflow from the basin in the unnamed tributary to Flat River.

The department dispatched an investigator to the scene to oversee the cleanup and determine the extent of the environmental damage.

The department considers discharges of wastewater from sanitary sewer collection systems to be potential threats to public health and the environment. Such discharges have the potential to contaminate lakes and streams, causing serious water quality problems.

Communities across Missouri produce millions of gallons of wastewater that must be properly transported and treated before being released to waterways.

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