NEW ALBANY, IN, June 10, 2021 – To proactively address sanitary sewer needs for the unserved and underserved areas, Dubois County partnered with Clark Dietz to study the potential for a regional sewer district (RSD). An initial public meeting was held on Monday, May 3rd, to explain the intent behind the study, the public survey, and feedback campaign. To assist the County in identifying potential sanitary sewer infrastructure improvements throughout the County, responses from the survey will be used to help identify service areas; assess sanitary sewer service demand; and prioritize future infrastructure improvements.

The primary purpose in forming a regional sewer district is to provide sewer collection and treatment services in an economical way for unserved and underserved communities. In some instances, smaller communities, and rural areas with septic systems, may not have the ability to build the necessary infrastructure, or the cost of providing services is not affordable. Forming a regional sewer district will address concerns regarding costs and availability of services for citizens and the community while assigning management duties to the District.

Once a district is formed, it will have the responsibility for providing oversight and management of the sanitary sewer system infrastructure. In addition, districts are eligible for low-interest rate loans and grants, which may not be available to private utilities. This means that taxpayers can potentially save hundreds of thousands of dollars over time. Regional sewer districts are local forms of government established to address these specific concerns and manage the infrastructure of sanitary sewer systems.

Dubois County Regional Sewer District goals:

  • Develop a 20-to-30-year plan to potentially serve the unserved or underserved throughout the County that is economically feasible.
  • Dubois County RSD will build, own, and maintain the collection system infrastructure to the areas currently nor served by an existing sewer district.
  • To work with the existing sewer districts in the County to treat the sewer flow from the RSD collection system.
  • Provide a public utility alternative to those property owners that currently have failing septic systems.

What the RSD will NOT do:

  • We will NOT require any existing developed property to hook on to the system as long as they have a permitted, compliant, functioning septic system.
  • We will NOT require any existing sewer district to become part of the RSD.
  • We will NOT initiate any septic system inspections.

Once the study is completed, a second public meeting will be held to share the results with the residence of Dubois County.