Anne Arundel County halts new development in some areas due to sewer capacity
Anne Arundel County enacted an immediate moratorium on new development in some areas, as the sewer system has reached peak capacity, the Department of Public Works (DPW) said Monday.
The moratorium halts approvals for sewer capacity allocation for new developments within the Baltimore City Sewer Service Area (SSA), according to the department.
"Our multi-county team exhausted all options before arriving at the conclusion that we cannot approve any new connections in these specific areas," said Anne Arundel County DPW Director Karen Henry. "Our primary focus is to protect the health of our residents and the environment by avoiding sanitary sewer overflows."
Sewer reaches peak capacity
According to DPW, the county reached peak capacity within the SSA, specifically in areas that connect to the Baltimore County Patapsco Interceptor and the Sewage Pumping Station.
The SSA spans across much of northwest Anne Arundel County, including Hanover, Linthicum Heights, Pumphry, BWI Airport and parts of Jessup.
The county is still within its Average Daily Flow limits, according to DPW. However, the aging infrastructure of the shared system, along with increased inflow and infiltration during wet weather, has caused peak volume to exceed the limits dictated in multijurisdictional agreements.
The agreements, outlined in ongoing consent decrees with Baltimore City and Baltimore County, mean that additional sewer capacity cannot be allocated to Anne Arundel County. This is creating a bottleneck for new development, according to DPW.
Moratorium on new development
The moratorium aims to address the bottleneck by halting approvals for new development projects to have additional sewer capacity within the SSA.
The moratorium also suspends capacity allocation approvals for building or tenant customization permits for projects that flow into the affected infrastructure.
Projects that have already received sewer capacity approval will be honored, but no additional allocations will be granted, according to DPW. Acceptations will be made for infill lots (or underused pieces of land within developed areas) with failing septic systems. Some tenant fit-out projects will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Projects with requests on hold will not get final approval until additional sewer capacity is secured and the moratorium is lifted, DPW said.
According to the department, the county is conducting a Wastewater Strategic Plan that could divert sewer flows to the Patuxent or Cox Creek facilities. This process is expected to take at least five years.
