Facilities

Blanton Mill Land Application System

Blanton Mill facility is 800 acres in size and works in conjunction with the Shoal Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant. Together they service the western portion of Griffin and parts of Spalding County. The land application site was constructed in 1998 and is permitted for 2.25 MGD.

Cabin Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant

Cabin Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant was originally constructed in 1936. The plant is permitted for 1.5MGD and services the north Griffin area. In 2018-2019 the plant was completely rebuilt to address the new NPDES permit conditions. The process necessary to treat the effluent discharge is treated with an Oxidation Ditch. The cost of construction was 16.1 million dollars.

Potato Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant

Potato Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant originally constructed in 1976 and upgraded in 1988 to address pre-industrial treatment. In 2016-2017 the plant was completely rebuilt and expanded to a 3.0MGD plant to address expansion of industries in the Lake of Green Valley Industrial Park. The design process to treat the influent is a SBR. The cost of the new plant was 20 million dollars and the plant services the south side of Griffin.

Shoal Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant

Shoal Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant was constructed in 1986, replacing the old Shoal Creek Plant. It serves in tandem with the Blanton Mill Land Application System. It is permitted for 2.25MGD. In 2019-2020 the plant was modified with a new head end at a cost of 8 million dollars. The plant services the west side of Griffin.

TMDLs

The Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program deals primarily with non-point source pollution - pollution that doesn't have a specific point of discharge. Non-point source pollution comes from stormwater running off land into streams - for example, runoff from agriculture, logging, lawns, roads, parking lots, and construction sites. A TMDL is the total amount of the pollutant that can be put into the waterway without making it exceed the state water quality standard.

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) maintains a list of waterways that don't comply with state water quality standards - the 303 (d) list. For each stream on the list, the state must define a TMDL for pollutants that exceed state water quality standards. One a TMDL is set, a determination must be made as to how much of the TMDL can be contributed by each of the Sources of the pollutant - including urban stormwater runoff, agriculture, and forestry activities.

How Will This Program Affect The City of Griffin?

Whenever you apply for a new water withdrawl or a wastewater discharge permit - or an expansion of an existing permit - you must submit a watershed protection plan to EPD. TMDL compliance must now be considered in that plan.

How Can You Prepare for TMDL's?

There are six key steps you can take now....

1. Learn about the watersheds in your jurisdiction.
   Watersheds are natural drainage areas, defined by ridges of land - like the edges of a bowl. Watersheds do not follow political boundaries.

2. Check the quality of any stream monitoring programs in your area.
   EPD uses data from stream monitoring programs as the basis for developing the 303(d) list. If Streams in your area are on the list, examine EPD's data, decide whether you agree with it, and take steps to collect more data if needed. More representative data may indicate that your streams actually do meet water quality standards. if streams in your area are on the 303(d) list, EPD is likely to change your permit conditions, when permits are reissued, to include stricter controls.

3. Review your current land use plans and zoning regulations.
   You and your stakeholders need to understand how land uses affect water quality. Also, make sure that erosion and sedimentation controls on new development are enforced.

4. Plan for stormwater management.
   Through careful land use planning and the use of best management practices, you can minimize the impacts of stormwater runoff on water quality. Stormwater runoff can be improved through methods like erosion control, and by establishing and protecting green spaces, park lands, and stream buffers. These methods can enhance quality of life - without extensive costs.

5. Educate and involve the public.
   For effective TMDL compliance, you must educate everyone in your community about water quality. Because we all contribute to the water pollution problem, we must all be involved in the solutions.

6. Partner with other local governments in your watersheds.
   It is critical to work with other communities as you discuss how to distribute TMDL's among the pollution sources in your waterways.

Resources

• Wastewater Management Plan 2010-2030
• Septic Tank Policy
• NPDES Permits
  • Blanton Mill
  • Cabin Creek
  • Potato Creek
  • Shoal Creek
• Griffin/Spalding Wastewater Management Program – This Wastewater Management Plan was prepared as an update of the existing plan developed in July, 1995 and updated in April, 2000. The plan presented here is intended to cover the wastewater system needs for the 20-year planning period ending in 2025

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