Leak Repair Is Underway
Brevort Twp. Sewer Damage Discovered
By Paul Gingras

To combat a major leak in a sewer pipe at the Brevort Township lift station, the township board of trustees hired Maverick Construction at its Tuesday, June 5, meeting to build a pipe system to bypass the sewer's wet well, allowing the sewer to continue operating while the defective pipe and its fittings are replaced. If not addressed immediately, the leak could destroy the sewer system, said Rob Frazier of Maverick.

Mr. Frazier could not provide a cost estimate for the work because blueprints provided by the sewer's designer do not match the pipes and fittings that he and sewer operators have discovered at the station.

"I cannot say if it will be $5,000 or $25,000 until I get down there," Mr. Frazier said, but "it is fixing to fail, and it is fixing to fail badly."

Brevort Lake is not in immediate danger of contamination, he said, but the lake and the sewer system could be harmed if the pipe is not repaired quickly. Mr. Frazier began work Wednesday, June 6. It is the second time Maverick has been employed to combat sewer problems in the township this month.

After completing repairs to a sewer line on Crystal Road, Mr. Frazier, Township Supervisor Ed Serwach, Ron Peterka, and Hank Michaels assessed the lift station Monday, June 5, in response to complaints by area residents, who reported strong odors coming from the lift station. New filters had been installed recently, so they suspected another problem. They discovered a discharge pipe in the wet well had developed a leak, causing the odor.

The wet well is necessary to keep the system running. There is no way to fix the problem without building a bypass system, Mr. Frazier explained. Les Therrian, director of public works for the City of St. Ignace, and representatives of the Department of Environmental Quality agreed that this is the only option, Mr. Serwach said.

Owing to the severity of the problem, area residents at the meeting insisted that the board allow Mr. Frazier to go through with his plan, and to get a loan to pay for it, if necessary. The board voted unanimously to do so.

The design should have included a bypass system to begin with, Mr. Frazier said, speculating it may have been eliminated to trim costs. Addressing the board and the public, Mr. Frazier drew an illustration of the problem and its solution. He explained that sewer system construction is "not an exact science," and once built, they require constant maintenance.

Leaks in discharge pipes will occur again, and other repairs will be needed, so a bypass system at the lift station is critical, he said. Some feel the system will not work without a lift station to pump, Mr. Frazier said, but he made a strong case for it, and the township board and residents agreed that he should proceed.

If all goes well, the repairs should eliminate the odor problem.

The board voted to pay an $1,800 bill to Maverick to clear the blocked sewer pipe on Crystal Road. The township expects a bill for assistance from the City of St. Ignace, also. The work was done by six men, working for two full days.

Blockage at Crystal Road is not the result of a design flaw, Mr. Frazier said. The system is not working properly because there are not enough homes to provide sufficient flow to keep solids moving through the sewer line. He advised the township to flush the pipe monthly or every two weeks to keep it clean and increase the amount of water currently being used to do so. Maintenance crews were pumping 300 gallons at a time through the line, while Maverick pumped more than 1,000 gallons.

To make repairs, workers dug down to the sewer line, opened it, and injected a powerful burst of water. Unless a sufficient burst of water is used for preventive maintenance, the problem will recur, and the township will continuously need to dig and open the line to clear blockages, he said.

Most likely, U.P. Engineers used a two-inch pipe to allow for new construction in the area, Mr. Frazier said. If the company had included a smaller pipe in the design, there would have been faster flow through the system and the pipe would not have developed block- ages, however, if new houses were added to a system with a thin sewer line, it would need to be replaced to accommodate them. The line on Crystal Road can handle 10 more homes. Designing rural sewer lines to accommodate new buildings is common, he added.

Blockages on the Crystal Road line have led to build ups of material in the past.

Mr. Serwach noted that preventive flushing must be done on Walker Road's sewer line, also. Unlike Crystal, the Walker line is in a wooded area, so accessing it would be more difficult, he said.

Despite problems and unexpected expenses associated with the sewer line, area resident Otto Roggenbuck said it is still "a godsend to the community."

Prior to its installation, faulty or inadequate septic systems in the area led to visible pollution in Brevort Lake and area ditches, and the sewer is part of the reason the lake's fish population is increasing, he said.

Mr. Roggenbuck called upon the board to increase payment to sewer maintenance workers. One of them is Ron Peterka. Mr. Peterka is retired and said he is not interested in a full time job.

Mr. Serwach praised Mr. Peterka and Hank Michaels for their ongoing, and inexpensive maintenance of the sewer system, and said dealing with the sewer is much more time- and labor- intensive than anyone had anticipated.

To pay for future problems with the sewer line, Mr. Roggenbuck beseeched the board to increase the sewer rate. Mr. Serwach said many residents already complain about their sewer bills, and many are unhappy with the performance of the system.

Three hundred residents' homes are connected to the sewer system at a cost of $30 per month. Mr. Roggenbuck suggested a monthly increase of $1.

In a related issue, the board agreed to donate its old water tanker truck, formerly part of its firefighting equipment, to the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. The board had previously promised to do so, said Township Clerk Susan Stelzer.

The township's newly acquired tanker truck will be needed to provide sufficient water volume to flush the sewer line on Crystal Road.

The township's old tanker truck would be useful for sewer maintenance, board members said, but they agreed that the tribe had been generous to the township and voted to go through with the donation. Trustee Vern Erskine asked that the truck be turned over with a request that the township be allowed to use it for occasional sewer line maintenance.

In other business, Mr. Serwach read a letter by Jake and Mary Weiss requesting approval to convert their farm on Wartella Road to a used car lot. Mr. Serwach said the matter would be turned over to the planning commission, which will make a recommendation to the township board.

Area residents praised the success of the first Brevort Lake Walleye Derby, held Saturday, June 2. Residents noted that it brought many people to the township, and many from the area attended. The derby is expected to be an annual event.