OJAI VALLEY : $20-Million Sewage Plant Upgrade OKd

The board of directors of the Ojai Valley Sanitary District has authorized a $20-million upgrade of the district’s sewage treatment plant.

The project, approved unanimously by the board Monday after three years of study and more than $500,000 in consultant fees, is expected to raise the quality of the effluent the district releases into the Ventura River and to satisfy state requirements for treatment plant operations.

The upgrade will be extensive and, with the exception of modifying a few buildings presently being used, will entail abandoning most of the present facilities and rebuilding, district General Manager Eric Oltmann said.

To pay for the upgrade, the $16-per-month sewage disposal fee for more than 11,000 customers in the Ojai Valley will gradually increase, Oltmann said. Fees will be raised at least 50% by 1995, to $24 to $26 a month, he said.

The state Water Quality Control Board, saying the district’s sewage treatment process causes excessive vegetation growth that chokes the Ventura River, issued a cease-and-desist order in 1989 demanding that the district further purify its effluent.

The board gave the district until July, 1993, to comply or face fines that could be as high as millions of dollars per day.

Although the upgrade of the plant at 6363 N. Ventura Ave. is not expected to be completed before late 1994, Oltmann said he hopes the Water Quality Control Board will extend its deadline when it learns the district is making a concerted effort to comply as soon as possible.