When Making History isn't Necessarily a Good Thing: Lessons Learned to Help You Negotiate Your Consent Decree

Akron, Ohio has actively addressed the issue of combined sewer overflows (CSOs) since the early 1990's. Over the years, Akron performed key system-wide studies aimed at reducing and controlling CSOs well in advance of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) CSO Control Policy (1994). These studies led to Akron being the first community in Ohio to submit a long-term control plan (LTCP) for CSO control in 1999. In 2002, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) agreed to Akron's LTCP. In 2004, USEPA began inquiring into Akron's LTCP. Although Akron cooperated with the regulatory agencies by completing several additional studies, their previously submitted plan (as agreed to with OEPA) was not approved. As a result, Akron received notice in March 2009 that USEPA had filed a formal complaint against the city. Akron became the first community in history to have their consent decree rejected by the US District Court, even after all parties had previously agreed to the terms and conditions of the consent decree. Based on the judge's opinions for rejecting the consent decree, several key consent decree items were suddenly open for re-negotiation. This required Akron to utilize different approaches to balance multiple technical, financial, and political challenges in order to reach agreement on a final consent decree.