Draft:DigIndy

DigIndy is a $2 billion tunnel system project that was built to hold 250 million gallons of sewage after rain. The former system was a combined sewer system, which allows for sewage and stormwater to flow through the same pipelines.

Background

When Indianapolis built its first sewer system, it was not intended to be a combined water system. The original system only allowed for stormwater to run through it. Once indoor plumbing became prevalent, the decision to combine raw sewage into the stormwater system was made. Indianapolis began to increase in population and the rainfalls increased, this system became overwhelmed. Overflow events increased over the years, causing raw sewage to back up into homes and businesses, causing an environmental problem. Many of these overflow events would pollute the White River near the affluent Northside neighborhoods of Meridian Hills and Broad Ripple. The residents of these neighborhoods complained and the city officials decided the solution was the Northside Sewer Diversion Project, that would divert sewage from northern Indianapolis to the Mapleton-Fall Creek Neighborhood and surrounding area.

Impacts and criticism

In 2001, the EPA began to look into the issues of the city sewer overflows after a complaint was filed by activist, Leon Bates, local residents and envronronmental organizations. Several organizations also The complaint filed caused the EPA to investigate the implications of the raw and untreated sewage being rerouted to Fall Creek's predominantly Black neighborhoods. The complaint filed was the first sewage complaint the EPA had ever accepted to be investigated. Congresswoman Julia Carson lobbied for the investigation to take place.

There was also a concerning concentration of E.Coli and other bacteria. The first Civil Rights complaint was filed in 1999, and around 2001 the city started a $20 million project that would allow for more sewage to be treated by Belmont Street waste facility. This poject's goal was to decrease the amount of waterflow into waterways. However, the complaint critisized the city of indianapolis and the Goldsmith administration for prioritizing smalller sewage issues in the Pogues Run area, which had a significantly lower minority population than that of the polluted areas of Fall Creek. The EPA concluded that Indianapolis' efforts were not adequate in mitigationg the ongoing environmental crisis the overflows were causing.

Project

In response to the EPA's findings Citizens Energy Group committed to a $2 billion Long Term Control Plan that would conclude by 2025, that would reduce overflow events. This project, which began in 2011, and is known as DigIndy, would store 250 million gallons of sewage over 200 feet below ground, and it would be released slowly into the Southport Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant. This redirecting of sewage would keep the sewage form entering Indianapolis waterways and eliminates overflow events. The system will also impact water systems from Indianapolis,all the way to to the Gulf of Mexico.The tunnel system is comprised of 6 tunnels that span a total of 28 miles.