Open Letter to Marco Island City Council

Dear Councilors;

In voting to cease dewatering and continue testing the air to determine the extent of the hydrogen sulfide problem, you have done a wonderful thing. There is little doubt that most Marco Islanders know this gas is harmful and stopping the open air discharge will go a long way towards improving conditions in the affected areas.

In reading some of Mr. Joel’s comments, however, I would like to caution you on allowing this groundwater to be pumped into our existing sewage collection system and sent to the treatment plant for disposal. This is an incredibly bad idea.

Introduction of this highly sulfurous material into the treatment process will upset the balance at the plant thereby risking discharge of substandard treated wastewater. Additionally the sulfur will coat the membranes and possibly clog them. At any rate it will lessen the time between cleaning and lower their overall life.

This is a very expensive item, and if the membranes lifespan is reduced by introducing this material into the treatment process that will result in premature replacement of the membranes, which of course is incredibly false economy.

The real solution to this problem is to get out of the dewatering business all together. This is not the responsibility of the Marco Island Utilities, nor is it the responsibility of The City of Marco Island, it is the responsibility of the contractors. Your job as councilors is to see to it that the City Administration enforces the terms and conditions of the contracts that these contractors signed.

You don’t have to be scientists, or engineers, or contractors, you just have to be City Councilors, and recognize that this is not the way to handle this problem. The contractors are responsible for methods and means, the contractors are responsible for complying with all safety regulations, the contractors are responsible to hold Marco Harmless for any and all lawsuits arising from or in connection with the work.

It is time you stepped back from micromanaging something you don’t know the first thing about and enforce the contracts.

Regards,
Butch Neylon