IONIA, Mich. — When you send something down the drain or flush the toilet, you're probably not thinking much about where it ends up. But in Ionia, it all makes the same trip to the wastewater treatment plant.
City leaders are urging residents to be more mindful of what goes down their drains following repeated sewer backups in residential neighborhoods.
"We get three to four calls a month where we have to go out and address a household complaining of a sewer backup in their basement or in their line," said Geoffrey Peterson, Ionia's public works director.
Peterson says Ionia's system is designed to carry wastewater, not grease, fats, oils, or so-called flushable wipes.
"I see different things in the sewer mains that shouldn't even be there", Peterson said, "if it can fit down a toilet, somehow it manages to find its way in there."
Assistant City Manager Michael Oszust says those clogs don't just cause an inconvenience.
"It can have an impact on the resident and their house, it can have a sewage backup and you have to deal with that cleanup, it can also damage infrastructure, and then it can also have environmental impacts as well," Oszust said.
And in the long run, it can hit taxpayers where it hurts.
"Repairs are going to cost the taxpayer money anyway, so that could either mean funds being allocated from something else to deal with these reoccurring repairs, to the infrastructure, or other municipalities have had to deal with rate adjustments," Oszust said.
Before it gets to that point, the city has a simple message: trash it, don't flush it. If you do run into a sewer issue, they want you to reach out.
"We can work with the plumber and make sure that no other steps are needed to resolve the issue," Oszust said.
For sewage issues, you can call Ionia City Hall at 616-527-4170 or Central Dispatch after hours at 616-527-0400.
"This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy."
