CLEARFIELD – Lawrence Township is issuing a final warning for residents who have not had their in-home inspections for inflow and infiltration.
At Tuesday’s meeting, Code Enforcement Officer Debra Finkbeiner said there are still 44 properties that have not had in-home inspections. She said there were 11 homes that still had sewer violations, which needed addressed.
Finkbeiner said the township has been doing everything they can to get these property owners to comply. She said the township is under mandate from the Department of Environmental Protection to remove the inflow and infiltration from their sanitary sewer system.
“For four years we’ve been telling the residents that this has to be done. We’ve sent out mailings, we’ve gone door-to-door, it’s been in the news, we’ve talked about it at meetings. We’ve done everything we can at this point to get people to comply. Now we have no choice but to start legal proceedings. It’s going to get very expensive for those people who won’t let us do the inspections. It’s also going to get expensive for those people who are in compliance, because we have to spend money in legal fees and time spent trying to get this problem addressed,” she said.
Finkbeiner said those who have not scheduled their in-home inspections, or who have problems that need addressed are urged to contact the township code department.
Supervisor Ed Brown reiterated that the township does not have an option.
“We must enforce the inflow and infiltration violations,” Brown said. “The township has done everything it can to remove the inflow and infiltration from the main system. It’s now up to the homeowners to make sure there’s nothing coming in from their end. We know where it’s coming from. We’ve got it narrowed down to specific areas at this point.”
