FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 1, 2025
CONTACT: Jenny Camper 614 579 7948
jcamper@lesiccamper.com
MUNICIPAL UTILITY COALITION OF LICKING COUNTY FILES FACILITY PLAN WITH OHIO EPA TO GUIDE RESPONSIBLE GROWTH IN WESTERN LICKING COUNTY
Collaborative plan focuses on affordable wastewater infrastructure
GRANVILLE, OH – The Municipal Utility Coalition of Licking County (the Coalition) today filed a comprehensive draft Facilities Plan with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. The Plan identifies short- and long-term solutions for centralized wastewater treatment in west and northwest Licking County and addresses OEPA’s upcoming update to the Statewide Water Quality Management Plan, also known as a 208 Plan, for the County.
“Western Licking County will experience substantial growth in the coming years and decades,” said Herb Koehler, Village Manager for the Village of Granville. “Our Plan takes direct inspiration from the Licking County FRAMEWORK report, a document developed by local governments, businesses, and residents to plan for future growth in western Licking County and continuing to maintain the values and sense of community that attracted our residents and is now attracting major businesses and investment. We want to encourage thoughtful, organic growth while ensuring that our local schools and other critical community needs are not neglected. Our ‘inside-out’ approach will allow us to increase treatment capacity and construct centralized sewers as the need arises, allowing us to keep sewer rates affordable.”
The Coalition is a collaborative and contractual partnership among the Village of Granville, the Village of Alexandria, and the City of Johnstown, which was created to enable them to offer a regional approach to the provision of water and wastewater service to western Licking County. The Coalition has the active support of the Johnstown Monroe School District, Granville Exempted School District, and Denison University.
Facility Plan Highlights:
The Facility Plan has voluminous amounts of data and maps and numerous elements, some of which are summarized here. First, using principally the comprehensive plans developed by local governments and the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC), it provides a detailed technical analysis of the projected growth in western Licking County over the next 5, 10, and 20 years—how much, when, where, and what kind—and the amount of sewer service that will be needed to serve the new development in this part of the county.
Second, it assesses the existing wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) owned by the Coalition members to determine when they will likely need to be expanded (and by how much) to be able to provide the projected demand. Over the next five years, the Coalition expects that the Johnstown WWTP’s capacity will grow from 1.2 million gallons per day (MGD) to 2.4 MGD; Alexandria’s WWTP from 0.08 MGD to 0.16 MGD; and Granville’s from 0.91 to 2.5 MGD. In the 10-year horizon, the Johnstown WWTP will likely need to expand to 4.8 MGD. Assuming growth in western Licking County maintains its intense pace for the next two decades, the Coalition will likely need to construct a new 3-5 MGD WWTP in the latter part of that time frame, likely in the vicinity of Alexandria or Granville.
Relatedly, the Plan analyzes the quantity and cost of the sewer trunk lines that would be needed over the 5-, 10-, and 20-year horizons to serve projected development.
Lastly, the Plan compares the Coalition’s Facility Plan with that submitted by the Licking Regional Water District.
Next Steps with Ohio EPA:
The Coalition has requested a meeting with Ohio EPA to obtain the Agency’s feedback and comments, and will then incorporate them into the final Facility Plan. After the final Plan has been submitted to Ohio EPA, the Agency will examine it and other information and make a recommendation to the Governor’s Office, which will then request U.S. EPA to approve the State’s updated 208 Plan for Licking County.
Link to Coalition Website and Facility Plan: https://www.muclc.org/
