Water-Basement Program

On June 9, 2004, the United States District Court approved a Consent Decree resolving the lawsuit between the United States/Ohio Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") and the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners/City of Cincinnati concerning alleged Clean Water Act violations.  The goal of the Consent Decree is to eliminate sewage overflows and bring the City and County into compliance with the Clean Water Act.

Many County residents have experienced sewage backups caused by problems in the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) system.  As part of the Consent Decree, MSD agreed to institute the Water-in-Basement ("WIM") Program.  As a result of part of the WIB Program, the MSD will provide three services to homeowners who suffer a sewage backup:

1. Investigation and cleanup of water in the basement incidents.

2. Reimbursement for damages arising out of Water in Basement incidents that were caused by capacity or maintenance issues.

3. Installation of measures to prevent the reoccurrence of water in basement incidents.

The U.S District Court appointed the Legal Aid Society to act as Ombudsman for the WIB Program.  The Ombudsman's role is to ensure that WIB victims obtain effective and timely assistance.  Homeowners and other residents who have questions or problems with the implementation of the WIB Program can contact MSD's Office at (513) 362-2801.

For more information, please visit the Metropolitan Sewer District's web page by clicking here.