Town’s new plant will head off big mess

A small Minnesota town near the Canadian border is happy about getting state cash to head off a big mess.

MPR's Dan Gunderson reported in November that officials in Williams have been warily watching a leaky sewage tank.

The fear is that the tank could burst and dump untreated wastewater into nearby Lake of the Woods.

The town sprung for the aluminum sewage tank in 2000, hoping in would last for decades. But the aluminum is deteriorating much quicker than expected. That means the town, with a population of about 210, was looking at enormous bill to repair or replace their wastewater system.

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A deteriorating sewage tank in Williams. (MPR Photo/Dan Gunderson)

Now the state bonding bill has come to the rescue, at least in part. The state will contribute $2.8 million toward a new treatment plant. Officials in Williams also expect grants from USDA Rural Development and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Small Cities Development Program.

The new plant will cost an estimated $3.7 and use a pond system to hold wastewater.

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