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A study on Elmer City’s options for sewage treatment suggests the town may save over the long run by building a new treatment plant of its own, instead of extending its decades-long contract with Coulee Dam.

Elmer City has received its wastewater treatment plant alternative study developed by Indian Health Services, and the report will get its first airing at the town council’s meeting, Oct. 12.

The report provides several alternative routes for the town to develop its own sewage treatment system, or do nothing at all and remain with Coulee Dam.

Town council members have been leaning towards a modular system located somewhere within Elmer City.

Elmer City officials feel that the town has not been treated fairly by Coulee Dam, and they claim Coulee Dam’s billings for the service are excessive. Town officials have routinely worked over and reduced billings from Coulee Dam. Those issues are still in dispute, with Coulee Dam having decided at one point to sue.

Elmer City officials have been studying what might be an alternative to continuing with Coulee Dam and negotiated with IHS engineers to prepare a full alternative study.

The “Elmer City Wastewater Preliminary Engineering Report” was written by engineer Brian Belsby, of Spokane.

The study states that a lift station in the Lone Pine area will “fail” once the Coulee Dam treatment plant is constructed and Elmer City’s pump is no longer able to meet the “head,” or increased elevation lift, required to discharge at the plant. “This will cause sewer backups and manhole overflows,” the report states.

The study shows that in putting in its own plant could save Elmer City money on operations and maintenance, but spend millions for a new plant up front.

In operation and maintenance, the town could save nearly $81,000 annually by putting in its own plant, but over 20 years, sticking with Coulee Dam would save from $724,000 to $3.3 million, depending on which of five alternatives are compared.

Currently, the report states, with a new modular plant, the O&M cost per year would be about $80,000. Doing nothing except upgrading its lift station and remaining with Coulee Dam, the O&M annual cost would be $146,400, the report estimates.

A completely new plant would cost $2.5 million to $4.7 million to construct. Replacing or upgrading the current lift station to continue with Coulee Dam would cost from $35,000 to $559,000 in construction costs alone, the reports estimates.

In the area of unit cost to Elmer City sewer customers, if Elmer City put in a modular system there could actually be a reduction in monthly costs from $45.92 per month to $42.79. Staying with Coulee Dam and upgrading its lift station would cost each customer billed $56.13 per month, the study says.

Elmer City Mayor Gail Morin said last week that there’s no certainty that IHS would help her town develop its own system.

“Typically, when they do help with a project they provide 80-percent funding,” Morin said.

Any loan Elmer City would have to take out could affect the per-unit cost for ratepayers, Morin explained.

The ultimate decision is up to the Elmer City Town Council, Morin stated. “it’s up to the council what they want to do,” she said.

Town officials recently went to Curlew to look at a system developed for that community, and have been studying modular projects for the past couple of years.

Currently, Elmer City is in year 42 of a 50-year agreement with Coulee Dam to handle its sewage. Elmer City currently provides about 21 percent of the flow to the Coulee Dam plant.