Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candice S. Miller has once again loudly sounded the alarm over a major sewage overflow incident that sent an estimated 1.2 million gallons of untamed waste directly into the Red Run Drain. This environmental misstep, as reported by ClickOnDetroit, has Miller pointing a stern finger at neighboring Oakland County's George W. Kuhn Retention Treatment Basin for the release that allegedly took place on April 3.
The tension has escalated to the point where Miller swiftly took action by penning a stern letter to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) Director Phillip Roose, to not only report the incident but also to vehemently stress the ongoing issue. "These raw sewage discharges have occurred for many years, and nothing has ever been done," Miller stated in her letter, a sentiment mirrored in the coverage by CBS Detroit. Beyond the immediate ecological hazard, the Macomb County Public Works staff uncovered an unsettling array of sanitary wipes, condoms, and tampons entangled in the local flora along the banks of the Red Run, reflecting the gravity of the situation.
According to the narrative fashioned by FOX 2 Detroit, the Kuhn Basin is instrumental in managing both stormwater and sanitary flows from a total of 14 communities within southeast Oakland County. Yet, during episodes of intense rainfall, the structure is unable to fully contain the volume, leading to the unceremonious discharge into the Red Run Drain, which inevitably migrates into the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair.
With the permit of the Kuhn Basin teetering on the edge of renewal, Miller took the opportunity to press for stringent measures to be hardwired into the new mandate. Her suggestions include, but are not limited to, forcibly separating storm sewers from the sanitary flow, erecting substantial retention basins, and implementing detention ponds. On a related note, Miller lamented the apparent lack of communication from Oakland County whenever such discharges occur, elucidating a dire need for timely notifications for the alerted downstream communities in Macomb, a compliance failure noted in her letter and reported by ClickOnDetroit.
While Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Jim Nash has previously defended the basin's operations as being within state standards, the repeated occurences have not gone unnoticed, with Miller's outcry amplifying public awareness and governmental scrutiny. It remains to be seen whether the plea for action will usher in concrete changes or become another chapter in the continuing saga of inter-county environmental contention.
