Beginning next month, sewer rates in Mt. Carmel will be increasing for the first time in seven years. At yesterday’s City Council meeting, water and sewer commissioner Justin Dulgar ran down the increases that were approved unanimously by commissioners….

Dulgar said the city has borrowed $3.4 million from the EPA to pay for previous upgrades to the sewer plant. He said the increase in rates will not only be used to pay off the loan, but also to help cover other costly repairs the sewer department is tackling including the massive break at 3rd and Division. There, Dulgar said 1,200 feet of sewer line wlll need to be replaced…something he said would be “pretty expensive”. In fact, since the EPA has no provisions for loans for emergency projects such as this, the city is seeking local financing to pay for the work. Otherwise, the repairs would have to be halted during the lengthy EPA loan process.

Dulgar pointed out that the sewer and water departments operate as stand-alone entities within the city budget and money out of the city’s general fund can’t be used to pay for anything related to those two departments. They are totally dependent on user fees.