St. Petersburg Residents Demand Action Amid Severe Flooding and Wastewater Discharges

Residents across St. Petersburg implored city officials to help mitigate flooding impacts after torrential rains caused widespread inundation for a second consecutive night Wednesday. First responders received nearly 200 emergency calls related to flooding Wednesday evening. West St. Pete received over 5″ inches of rain in an hour.

Claude Tankersley, public works administrator, said St. Petersburg’s water systems could withstand 7. 5″ inches of rain in 24 hours. Despite scientists warning of increasingly intense storms, residents should not expect a capacity increase. “We are not going to be designing our systems to handle four or five inches in an hour,” Tankersley said.

“It would be in the billions of dollars. I just don’t think we’re prepared to commit ourselves to that kind of cost. ” City officials reported that Tuesday evening downpours caused manholes to discharge at least 3,000 gallons of untreated wastewater. Tankersley told the Catalyst Thursday afternoon that he suspected crews would find additional overflows. He also expects the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to fine the city for those discharges.

Tankersley did not mention wastewater woes at a subsequent city council meeting. Council members did not ask for an update. However, officials did update the FDEP Thursday. The pollution notice now states that 10,450 gallons of untreated wastewater spilled into Joe’s Creek. In addition, another 5,200 gallons leaked at the Northwest Water Reclamation Facility.

Crews captured 200. The city has not notified area residents via social media or a dedicated website. A sign warning residents of potential wastewater contamination after an August 2023 sewage spill in St. Petersburg. “Since 2016, we’ve spent hundreds of millions of dollars – close to a billion dollars’ worth – fixing our public pipes,” Tankersley said.

“We believe the wastewater discharges associated with these storms come from … private laterals. ” Those pipes connect homes to St. Petersburg’s sewer system. Tankersley explained that torrential rains submerge the laterals in groundwater, which overwhelms the city’s system. He said officials have a $1 million fund to help homeowners update their problematic pipes.

Costs can range from roughly $3,000 for a cleaning to $15,000 for a replacement. The city offers reimbursements of up to $8,000. County officials cap their program at $3,500. Tankersley said the city recently received over 500 requests to inspect stormwater drains and pipes. Crews inspect the often-outdated infrastructure “to the best of our ability” and find that roughly 75% are “free and clear.

” “Which, again, supports the idea that this is just the system being overwhelmed.