(Kansas City, Kan., March 31, 2009) - The City of Independence, Mo., has reached an agreement with EPA Region 7 and the U.S. Department of Justice to make a series of improvements to its sanitary sewer system aimed at keeping millions of gallons of untreated sewage from flowing into local urban streams, including Mill and Rock creeks, and the Missouri River watershed each year.

Under terms of a consent decree lodged today in Kansas City, Mo., Independence will pay a settlement penalty of $255,000 to the United States. The city will spend an additional $450,000 on a Supplemental Environmental Project involving soil and bank stabilization and the use of native grasses and flowers to replace fescue grass at three of its water detention basins.

For more information, contact:

Kevin Bell
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington, DC 20460-0001
(202) 564-4027
bell.kevin@epa.gov