By ROD ZOOK
Hutch Post
SOUTH HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The City of South Hutchinson and the state continue to try to come up with a solution to treating wastewater in the city.
The city has been out of compliance with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment for its wastewater discharge into the Arkansas River for many years. The water has too much salt content with a majority of that coming from the Tyson plant. Now the KDHE says it's time to do something about it.
“The state has finally come out and said it’s time to quit kicking the can down the street. It’s time for us to work out a plan to get into compliance with these requirements,” South Hutchinson City Manager Joe Turner said.
Turner says the action by the KDHE leaves just one option but two possibilities on how the water discharge problem is remedied. That means either Tyson will have to better treat its wastewater before sending it off to the city treatment plant or the city will have to come up with a way to better treat the water before it leaves its facility. Neither is a cheap fix.
“Tyson, I’m sure, is not ecstatic about it because a treatment option is going to be fairly expensive,” Turner said. “From the city’s perspective, we’ve done literally everything we can to try and accommodate and work with Tyson and the state to try and make this amenable as possible.”
Turner says the city has hired an engineering firm to come up with a plan for dealing with the wastewater. Once that plan is in place, the city and Tyson will have 28 months to come up with a solution to keep the wastewater at acceptable standards.
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