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D.C. Water was able to confirm that they are barred by law from charging fees for sump-pump overflow.

The problem is that I can find very little suggest that these buildings are using the sump-pump near 24x7. On the contrary, there is more evidence that modern building techniques are pretty good at sealing out water, etc. and very few are installed with sump pumps anymore. According to to some engineers I've spoken to, if sump pumps are needed, it's mostly in relation to heavy rainfall: rain that would otherwise be contributing to the runoff problem if it were hitting pavement or other paved surfaces anyway.

However, some older (primarily government) buildings do have more problems with basement groundwater which may have to be pumped more often, which is what apparently prompted the Council to take action to head-off the fees. In this case, I'm not sure if the government would be willing to raise its own fees but it's certainly something to look at.

by Adam L on Jun 22, 2012 1:30 pm • link • report