Oconee County Reports Spill At Calls Creek Wastewater Plant

Operational problems caused a spill of partially treated wastewater into Calls Creek from the Oconee County wastewater treatment plant of that name located just north of Watkinsville, the county announced Thursday morning.

The partially treated release occurred at approximately 12:30 a.m. on Jan. 9, according to the statement from Wayne Haynie, director of the county’s Water Resources Department, previously called the Utility Department.

Wastewater treatment plant personnel identified the problem through analyses of effluent samples, according to Haynie’s statement.

An estimated 24,000 gallons of wastewater that exceeded permit limits for total suspended solids was released from the plant’s discharge pipe into Calls Creek, Haynie’s statement said.

The spill is classified by the Georgia Environment Protection Division as “major,” and the county notified the EPD as well as the county Environmental Health Department, according to the statement.

For more on the story, go to Oconee County Observations.

Pictured: Haynie At Meeting in 2016.