Foes of sewage plant score victory in court

Opponents of a proposed sewage-treatment plant near the Jordan River in Riverton scored a court victory this week.

Third District Court Judge Stephen Roth on Monday denied a motion by the South Valley Sewer District to alter or amend his previous ruling that supported the Riverton Board of Adjustments' decision to revoke the conditional-use permit for the treatment plant.

"We've won another round in keeping the sewer plant from being built," said Jeff Salt, who has organized a group of residents to join Riverton in the fight against building the facility in the Jordan River bottoms at 13500 South.

Todd Godfrey, attorney for the sewer district, said an appeal is likely. Sewer-district officials have been fighting since March 2002 to get approval for the Riverton plant.

District officials say a new plant is needed to meet sewage-treatment demands created by the growth in Salt Lake County's southwestern suburbs.

The district is part of the South Valley Wastewater Treatment Facility in West Jordan, but it has exceeded its contracted dumping limits. The district has been leasing rights for additional capacity from other sewer districts that use the West Jordan facility.

Opponents of the project say sewer-district officials failed to analyze alternative sites for the sewer plant and settled too quickly on the Riverton location.

"(The sewer district wants) to build a huge sewer plant that isn't going to serve people in the area," Salt said.

A new sewer facility should be built west of Bangerter Highway, he said, because that is where the majority of growth is expected to occur.

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