NORTH WEBSTER - The Lakeland Regional Sewer District passed a motion Thursday to get rid of the option of transporting sewage to North Webster.
The LRSD was formed to look at ways to better the sewer system in the Barbee Chain Of Lakes area only.
No plan for a sewer system is set.
The board voted Thursday to take the option of moving possible sewage in the future to North Webster off the table.The issue with North Webster would possibly overwhelm its plant.
County Commissioner Ron Truex, who sits on the LRSD board, brought up the issue of a countywide sewer district.
Truex said that he and fellow commissioner Bob Conley are traveling to Indianapolis Tuesday to meet with officials from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
Truex said IDEM has become interested in Kosciusko County possibly forming a countywide sewer district.
The idea of forming a countywide sewer district came after the county commissioners in August decided against forwarding petitions from groups at Tippecanoe and Chapman lakes to the LRSD.
At that point, Truex said work would begin on looking at the possible formation of a countywide sewer district.
"There are a lot of possibilities out there," said Truex.
Truex said he didn't want any of the progress the LRSD has made to be in vain.
"The easiest option would be for this board to petition IDEM for a name and boundary change," said Truex. "The other way is for the county to form one without Turkey Creek and Lakeland Regional Sewer District."
Truex said that out of the 92 counties in Indiana, 14 have moved to countywide sewer districts.
Truex said the board of health has stated there is not an immediate need for sewers and that forming a countywide sewer district would be relatively simple to do.
As for what the countywide board would look like, Truex said it would be a seven-member board with county officials that have already been elected along with representatives from areas.
The board would take recommendations from those areas as to who would be their representatives on the board.
While discussion of a countywide board lasted for more than a half hour Thursday night, the LRSD made no motion.
The LRSD board meets the first Thursday of the month at 6 p.m. at the North Webster Community Center. The board will next meet Oct. 1.
