Megasite’s wastewater permit has been granted

It’s official, the Memphis Megasite’s wastewater permit has been granted. The Tennessee Department of Conservation’s Division of Water Resources granted the permit late Tuesday, May 1 according to an e-mail received by the Brownsville Press.

The permitting process has taken years.

Tennessee’s Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe has called the wastewater permit the chief “gating” item for preparing the sprawling industrial site for a mega-employer.

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Leaders we spoke to last week were skeptical when Assistant Commissioner Amy New told the Megasite Authority that the license would be signed “the first of May.” New could not have been more accurate.

Getting rid of thousands of gallons of treated wastewater has been a problem almost as big as the tract of land promoters hope will bring what could be perhaps billions in investments and thousands of jobs to West Tennessee.

An original scheme, developed more than a decade ago, to dump the water into the Forked Deer River switched to the Hatchie where scenic river supporters stopped the plan. The latest strategy, to pipe the water to the Mississippi River became troubled when residents near the planned outfall complained that during low water periods the water would be dumped on to dry land. A new design, that changed the location of the pipeline’s mouth into the river, apparently satisfied regulators.

What’s left for the important so-called “shovel ready” status is gaining easements for the pipe and some development money. Site recruiters say industry will only consider the tract if they know they can begin building immediately

Many landowners have already agreed to allow the pipe to be installed under their property, but the state has vowed to sue the handful who won’t. Legal experts say the courts will almost certainly grant the rights.

The state legislature provided nearly $31 million in this year’s budget for Megasite development. The cash, along with unspent development allotments, will fund the pipeline.

So far Tennessee has agreed to spend $170 million on what leaders hope will be an economic “transformation” for West Tennessee.