Since it was first established over 95 years ago, the Galesburg Sanitary District has seen several changes to the requirements for treating wastewater. The Galesburg Sanitary District is the local, standalone municipal entity with the sole responsibility of collecting and treating the sewage wastewater from the homes and businesses in Galesburg. Updated standards to wastewater treatment include the GSD to disinfect water that is discharged back to the environment. Another change is to combat Gulf Hypoxia– where excess fertilizers in the form of phosphorous and nitrogen are being discharged into the Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico. The excess fertilizer has caused algae in the Gulf to grow out of control. As a result, all wastewater treatment plants are being tasked with reducing the number of nutrients discharged from their plants, and Galesburg’s is no different. According to a release from the Galesburg Sanitary District, the existing plants in Galesburg were never intended to remove nutrients and in fact, they are incapable of removing phosphorous. The GSD Board of Trustees decided on a plan to upgrade the wastewater treatment plant. Engineers with Crawford, Murphy, and Tilly have suggested a three-phase construction project for the upgrade that will take approximately 5 to 7 years. In anticipation of the changes and construction plans, the GSD voted to increase user charges during last month’s meeting. The fees will be included in residents’ monthly water and refuse bills. The average homeowner can expect a $7.50 increase per month – or $26 per year. The increases will be included in next month’s bill.
