QuickTake:

The rural community's sewer infrastructure is on the verge of collapse. To avoid a shutdown, the association that treats sewage may merge with the Mapleton Water District.

The Mapleton Water District, which provides water to 262 households and businesses, may merge with the organization that treats sewage in the community in an effort to raise money that would shore up an aging rural sewer system. 

The Mapleton Water District and the Mapleton Commercial Area Owners Association want public input on their intent to merge before they make a final decision.

It’s a necessary step, officials say, so the rural unincorporated Lane County community about 46 miles west of Eugene can apply for and access state and federal funding for equipment and other costs. The wastewater system’s infrastructure operated by the association is on the verge of collapse and poses environmental threats. 

In April, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality fined the association $6,375 for violating the limits on pollutants in the treated wastewater it discharged into the Siuslaw River. The association made repairs, but now its funding is depleted and other equipment is at risk of failure, officials said and public records show.

For the association, it’s difficult to obtain funds from state and federal sources because it is a public charity. That makes it ineligible for sources like the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, a program that aids struggling communities that need to make wastewater improvements.

“Without a functioning sewer system, Mapleton will lose all of the retail businesses along the Siuslaw River, including the Maple Lane RV Park,” Art Donnelly, vice-chair of the Mapleton Water District Board of Commissioners, said in a statement. “Mapleton has lost enough. We are not going to let that happen.”

House Bill 3910, which the Legislature passed this session, paves the way for the merger into a special district by making it easier for a water district to assume responsibility for sanitary service. That, in turn, opens the door for funding opportunities. 

Mapleton officials lobbied lawmakers to pass the bill in Salem. 

“We think this small legislative change is imperative to the survival of our community, and protecting people and wildlife in the community and downstream,” Cynthia Mateos, president of the Mapleton Commercial Area Owners Association, wrote to lawmakers in March.

There’s some overlap between the two providers currently. Not all the water district’s customers get wastewater service from the association, which has less than 25 customers. 

But the association represents about 10% of the water district’s customers. This means the water district would lose those customers if homes and businesses could not install on-site wastewater treatment, Vanessa West, chair of the Mapleton Water District’s board of commissioners, told lawmakers in May testimony.

That would mean fewer people to cover the costs of water service. 

“In short, this is a community problem, not just the problem of a couple dozen homes and businesses,” West wrote.

Next steps

The water district and wastewater association customers can get more information at a public hearing scheduled for 6 p.m. July 14 at Mapleton Lions Club kitchen, 88158 Riverview Ave., Mapleton. The meeting will also include an opportunity for the public to ask questions.

Comments can be provided online, and the meeting will be streamed online for people who cannot attend in person.

The water district’s board could vote in a week later, on July 21, said Jordan Walker, a spokesperson and office administrator for the district. 

Both organizations also plan to do a feasibility study to determine the infrastructure upgrades and costs.

Ben Botkin covers politics and policy in Lane County. He has worked as a journalist since 2003, most recently at the Oregon Capital Chronicle, where he covered justice, health and human services and documented regional efforts to combat fentanyl addiction. Botkin has worked in statehouses in Idaho, Nevada, Oklahoma and, of course, Oregon. When he's not working, you'll find him road tripping across the West, hiking or surfing along the Oregon Coast.