The Georgia Environmental Protection Division hit the City of Atlanta with an almost $300,000 fine for sewage overflows at its R.M. Clayton Water Reclamation Facility.
Inspection by both the EPD and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in March and another in April found that while some maintenance was done in the R.M. Clayton, by August of last year the facility still had notable deferred maintenance, like broken filtration screens, broken and rusted equipment and tanks clogged with algae growth — and between those two inspections, repairs were slow.
According to the enforcement order from the Georgia EPD, between July 2023 and November 2024 the R.M. Clayton had 94 spills of wastewater with above-legal levels of contaminants. Additionally, the state alleges during that time staff failed to sample wastewater for contamination four times, didn’t do proper lab analysis 25 times and failed to tell the state about spills seven times.
That accumulated to a fine of just over $290,000.
On top of the fine, the Georgia EPD says the City of Atlanta must submit a plan for all repairs to happen in the next six months after the EPD approves its plan, in addition to other requirements for testing water leaving the facility, updated operating procedures and more.
