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Township may plug hole in drainage problem
(by Joseph Koziol Jr. - April 07, 2010)
Township may plug hole in drainage problem
By JOSEPH KOZIOL JR.
Burton Township Trustees pledged their help Monday in solving a drainage problem along Stanley Drive.
Two residents approached the board to express concerns about an approximately 40-year-old drainage pipe that appears to be obstructing the flow of water in the ditch.
Resident Scot Dragmen said he fears that the pipe, which appears to drain water from the ditch in front of his home, may be contaminating area aquifers. He said it's a "serious problem."
Mr. Dragmen said a sinkhole which started at about 6 inches in diameter has grown to about 1.5 feet in diameter and creates a lake in the ditch whenever there are rains or area homes are doing laundry.
Trustees said they plan to work with the Geauga County Engineer's Office on a possible solution to the problem. More immediately, they will attempt to plug the hole with a clay expanding product that often is used to seal ponds, they said.
Mr. Dragmen was accompanied by his neighbor Alan Skeen, who told trustees the subdivision was built around the early 1960s and that the pipe collected the runoff from septic systems of the new homes. He said the neighborhood upgraded its septic systems, and the drainage pipe was abandoned.
He said residents fear that trucks working at a nearby golf course may have driven over the pipe and crushed it. He said water now backs up into his basement.
Rob Pealer, township road superintendent, said township crews had attempted to correct the situation by plugging the hole with gravel and digging the ditch by hand with shovels to provide an incline for better water flow. He said he used a transom to gauge the slope in the ditch.
Mr. Pealer said consultations were done with the Geauga County Engineer's Office, and he was told that the pipe is not the responsibility of the township. He said he also was told by township crews, who worked there before he arrived, that they had attempted to locate the pipe but were unable to after digging down about 6 to 8 feet.
Mr. Dragmen said he hopes the township could provide some type of relief or he would have to "take the next step."
When Trustee Daniel Whiting asked what the next step would be, Mr. Dragmen said he would call the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to investigate and take water samples from homes to determine whether contamination has occurred.
Mr. Whiting said he agrees with the county engineer that the township should not mess with the pipe. He said the township may have to study the issue to determine what the best solution is. One solution may be to pipe the ditch in front of Mr. Dragmen's house and cover it, he said.
Mr. Pealer said the township could put pipe there, but the problem may just surface somewhere else along the street. "We may chase this problem up the street," he said.
Trustee James Dvorak said trustees could use the expanding clay product now and talk with the county engineer's office about a more permanent solution, if there is one. Trustees plan to have an answer for the residents by the board's next meeting, he said. "We'll have a definite plan by our next meeting."
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