The Schuylkill County Municipal Authority is actively trucking in drinking water from outside sources to fill local storage tanks and maintain daily supply for the Tremont area.
That was the primary takeaway from a recent SCMA report detailing significant operational constraints currently facing the water and sewer systems serving Tremont Borough, as well as Tremont and Frailey townships.
The report was requested as part of information handed over by Schuylkill County Commissioners to U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser. It will be forwarded to the Department of Homeland Security regarding the ICE detention center planned for the former Big Lots Distribution Center in Tremont Township.
The SCMA report was submitted to the federal government just as DHS released information detailing how it selected locations for its new Detention Reengineering Initiative. DHS noted in its assessment that engineers evaluated the water and sewer infrastructure at all chosen sites and believed they met the necessary requirements.
The Tremont Township facility is expected to house up to 7,500 detainees at any given time, with individuals processed out after 45 to 90 days. It will be one of the largest ICE detention centers in the country.
Tremont Area’s Water Concerns
According to the SCMA, the areas served by the Tremont Water Filtration Plant require an average of 208,000 gallons of water daily. While the plant has a permitted capacity of 400,000 gallons per day, consecutive drought warnings in 2024 and 2025 severely depleted two key groundwater wells, rendering them unable to meet current daily demands.
To maintain potable water and fire protection levels, SCMA is hauling water under emergency permits issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and pumping it directly into the Tremont storage tank.
Consequently, the authority stated it cannot accommodate any additional water supply requests or new connections due to a lack of available capacity. SCMA expects supplies to recover once it initiates the use of the former Tierney Reservoir and anticipated spring groundwater recharge occurs.
According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor report, western Schuylkill County remains in Moderate Drought conditions, while central and eastern portions of the county are experiencing Severe Drought.
To bolster local water supplies, SCMA is seeking final approval for a Water Allocation permit from the state’s Dept. of Environmental Protection to use the Tierney Reservoir as a supplemental source. The authority anticipates final approval by the end of March, which would add roughly 70,000 gallons of water per day to the Tremont plant’s capacity. Additionally, an SCMA feasibility study concluded the authority must develop new groundwater wells in a broader regional area to sustain current and future demands.
Sewer System Constraints in Tremont Area
The SCMA report also highlighted sewage capacity limitations regarding future development.
The Tremont Wastewater Treatment Plant has a permitted capacity of 500,000 gallons per day. Data from 2025 indicates a current hydraulic load of 394,000 gallons per day. However, SCMA noted that some of the remaining 104,000-gallon capacity is already allotted to developments currently under construction or in the planning phase.
A primary bottleneck is the Maple Street Pumping Station, which handles 100% of the service area’s flow and transports it through an aging force main installed in 1973. Although the station was upgraded in 2008, SCMA reports it has reached maximum capacity and becomes overloaded during wet weather conditions.
Any new requests for sewer service, the authority noted, would require consideration for significant upgrades to the Maple Street Pumping Station and potentially the Tremont Wastewater Treatment Plant itself.
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