St. Pete Settles With Environmental Groups on Sewage Spill

ST. PETERSBURG – Two years after the City of St. Petersburg sent hundreds of millions of gallons of raw sewage into Tampa Bay, the city and three environmental groups that sued over the pollution have reached a settlement.

Suncoast Waterkeeper, Our Children’s Earth, and EcoRights filed the Clean Water Act citizen suit in late 2016, insisting that St. Petersburg commit to more specific and aggressive measures to fix its beleaguered sewage system in order to prevent recurring sewage spills into neighborhoods and Tampa Bay Area waters.

To settle the lawsuit, the parties agreed that the city would request an amendment to its previous "consent order“ with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, that the amendment would contain additional work commitments, and that the original consent order and its amendment will be enforceable by the federal court. In addition to the new work commitments, the city also agreed to a $200,000 payment to the Tampa Bay Estuary Program to be used for projects to benefit local ecosystems.

"Our citizen suit was essential to making sure that St. Pete fixes its beleaguered sewer system and stays on track in the years ahead,“ said Suncoast Waterkeeper Justin Bloom. "Political winds may shift and different individuals may be at the helm of the city government, but maintaining functional sewage infrastructure is critical to the health of our ecosystems, our communities, and so many businesses that rely on clean water and healthy estuaries in the Tampa Bay area.“