City of Socorro Petitions the TCEQ To Revoke Horizon Regional Municipal Utility District’s Wastewater Discharge Permit

In an on-going fight to protect the health and safety of its community, the City of Socorro has asked the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to revoke Horizon Regional Municipal Utility District’s permit to discharge wastewater.

The petition, was filed today, Monday, February 14, 2011. Technically, it’s based on Horizon’s failure to provide legal notice to Socorro of its wastewater discharge permit which includes a final sewage effluent discharge point located squarely in Socorro city limits.

The petition also asserts Horizon issued a faulty public notice of the permit and now consistently violates TCEQ regulations and permit conditions for the wastewater it already treats and discharges. The petition was submitted in partnership with the Environmental Clinic at the University of Texas School of Law as co-counsel.

As we already told you, the petition was served on Horizon on Friday, January 28, 2011, in order to give Horizon the 15 days’ notice of the filing as required under the TCEQ’s rules.

“Socorro deserves the same treatment from Horizon and the TCEQ that other communities and cities receive. Horizon has violated TCEQ regulations regarding proper notice, and continues to violate the terms of its TCEQ permit related to health and safety. These violations raise serious concerns for Socorro’s residents. This is just a matter of fairness and public health.” Yuri Calderon, Attorney for the City of Socorro

This is all because, the Horizon Regional Municipal Utility District built a major expansion to its wastewater treatment plant and added a pipeline that will discharge wastewater (sewage effluent) directly into an open ditch in Socorro, even though Socorro’s children and residents use the canal and downstream water and the discharge area is near a flood zone. Under state law and health and safety standards, humans are not supposed to even come into direct contact with wastewater.

And even though they started the project in 2006, Horizon never consulted any Socorro officials or residents, despite legal rules that it makes sure Socorro and the public received notice of the project. Socorro accidentally discovered the project last summer(2010.)

Because Socorro notified Horizon that it needed building permits for the project, and that it would have to apply for a zone change (because the land where the project is located is not zoned for a wastewater pipeline,) Horizon sued Socorro in El Paso District Court arguing it can ignore Socorro’s rules and regulations. The Judge has not ruled on that case yet.

Source: City of Socorro.