Caller reported potential leak in wooded area
On Friday, Feb. 13, over a period of about two hours, approximately 38,000 gallons of raw sewage leaked from a 4-inch force main located at 13999 Parkstone Way, Sarasota County Public Utilities staff members have reported to the Florida Department of Environmental Development (FDEP).
County workers were recovering the sewage at the time the report was issued, staff noted.
“The nearby lift station was shot off to immediately stop the spill” after county staff arrived at the scene, the report said.
The site is south of Fruitville Road and west of Myakka Road, in the far eastern portion of the county, a map shows.
A call alerted county staff to the fact that a leak might be underway in an easement in a wooded area, the report pointed out. The problem began about 10:20 a.m. and was resolved by 12:30 p.m., the report said.
A sewer force main is a pipeline that conveys wastewater under pressure from a lower to a higher elevation, the Environmental Protection Agency has explained.
“The recovery, cleanup, and repair of the wastewater pipe is still in progress,” staff wrote in the report, which was dated Feb. 14. However, it noted, “No surface waters were affected,” so no sampling of a water body was required. “Cleanup and notification [were] proceeding per protocol,” the report did point out.
The affected infrastructure is associated with the Bee Ridge Water Reclamation Facility (WRF), the report added. That is the county’s largest wastewater treatment plant.