Water and waste management remain a mess in southeast Texas. As of Sunday, more than 800 wastewater treatment facilities in southeast Texas were still not fully operational as a result of the effects of Hurricane Harvey. Additionally, officials have become aware of the release of wastewater from sanitary sewers, according to the Washington Post.
At least 13 toxic waste sites were flooded or damaged by Hurricane Harvey, according to the EPA. The agency assessed 41 Superfund sites using aerial images, but EPA workers have not yet been able to safely access the sites directly, according to CNN. The affected sites have industrial waste from acid compounds, solvents, pesticides and petrochemical companies.
Wastewater treatment plants are facing “unprecedented challenges,” experts say. In addition to sewer overflows, system failure and private septic tank failure, the water infrastructure also faces potential contamination from spilled fuel, waste site runoff, lawn pesticides and pollutants from refineries, writes the Minneapolis Star Tribune. When wastewater utilities that remove contaminants from drinking water are inundated with floodwaters, they can become unstable. Additionally, power outages can keep them from running their pumps, said Kevin Morley, a federal relations manager with the American Water Works Association (via Bloomberg BNA).
Authorities have said it will take 10 to 15 days for floodwaters to recede.
Businesses Face Clean-up Challenges
Retailers and other local businesses are dealing with their own stormwater and waste challenges. Not only do many face the need to pump out contaminated water and eventually to engage in mold abatement, but in many cases, walls, floors, and furniture have to be thrown out – not to mention expensive industrial equipment, points out New York Magazine. Retailers must also deal with products ruined by flooding.
Flooded retail stores mean that products – some of which may contain hazardous materials that must be disposed of properly – are damaged and deemed unsellable or unsalvageable. “The residual damage caused by floods can impact a variety of hazardous waste removal efforts,” according to Maricha Ellis, VP of marketing and sales at Stericycle Environmental Solutions. “These products must be segregated according to waste stream.”
Waste removal schedules have been disrupted in the area, though the City of Houston’s Solid Waste Management Department says regular schedules will resume on Thursday. Waste Management said late last week (via Waste Dive) that it was first focusing on debris removal from critical customers like hospitals and shelters.
How to Prepare for the Next Event
Moving forward, companies might want to consider putting a triage system into place so that trained internal employees are prepared to walk through the store to identify which materials should be pulled for further segregation, Stericycle suggests. As these employees examine these materials, they determine the next steps for the damaged products. Not all damaged products will need to be disposed of, as there’s a chance that even if they are deemed unsalable on their retail shelves, they can be sent to a salvage facility where they can be donated to an organization in need, says Ellis.
With materials that must be profiled for disposal, they must be processed and handled accordingly. Throughout this process, sampling and analytical testing is conducted. When sorting the materials, it’s a best practice to determine which components may be recycled or otherwise repurposed to reduce the total amount of landfill waste resulting from the emergency response cleanup.
Additionally, it can be helpful to have an emergency response partner that can help you reopen all flooded locations as soon as possible. Do note that without a pre-existing agreement in place, it could take more time for an emergency response partner to service your store/business, as they tend to service their own customers first. Emergency response partners can work with local law enforcement and emergency response teams to find out when it’s safe to travel to each affected store/building and begin the hazardous waste cleanup process as soon as possible, according to Stericycle.
