ATLANTA — City officials say they have made “significant strides” in improving conditions at a wastewater treatment plant blamed for recent harmful spills.
They offered a media tour Wednesday of the R.M. Clayton Water Reclamation Center, which has been the target of state regulators and environmentalists.
In February, the state Environmental Protection Division fined the city $290,817 for violations at the facility, which is nearly 100 years old.
The agency said those violations led to numerous spills of improperly treated wastewater into the Chattahoochee River, polluting it with unsafe levels of E. coli, ammonia, and fecal matter.
“Over the past months, R.M. Clayton staff and contractors have made significant strides,” said Peter Aman, Chief Strategy Officer for the city of Atlanta.
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He said the improvements have produced results, with the facility not exceeding E. coli limits since March 2024.
Greg Eyerly, the city’s Commissioner of the Department of Watershed Management, said equipment has been replaced and repaired in the facility’s clarifiers. Those are the settling tanks where solids – the sludge and scum – are separated from the wastewater.
Eyerly said the improvements will help prevent spills of poorly treated wastewater.
“We have aging infrastructure that needs to be replaced,” he said. “That’s costly, and it’s going to require investment. Technology’s changing. We need to implement that technology as we rebuild our treatment plants.”
Officials say the city has also hired more staff at the facility and installed additional chemical scrubber odor control systems.
Eyerly, who recently moved from Houston, said Atlanta is not alone.
“The issues and challenges that we’re facing in Atlanta are very, very similar to other major metropolitan areas,” he said. “That’s just typical of what you’ll see in a lot of treatment plans – this ongoing replacement of equipment as it ages.”
The Chattahoochee Riverkeeper has filed a federal lawsuit against the city, claiming the plant has violated the Clean Water Act. Its executive director, Jason Ulseth, declined to comment on the improvements at the facility because of the pending litigation. He said he is scheduled to tour the plant next week.
“The city continues its work on R.M. Clayton, including making the necessary investments to protect the Chattahoochee River,” Aman said. “The city cares deeply about the Chattahoochee River and is willing to engage with any interested stakeholders on improvements to the river.”,
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