A photo of part of the wastewater treatment process at the Cummins-Varner Wastewater Treatment Plant. (Photo courtesy of the Arkansas Division of Environmental Quality)
The Arkansas Board of Corrections on Tuesday approved spending $1.95 million to begin long-delayed repairs at the Cummins-Varner Wastewater Treatment Plant, which has been under a state consent order for ongoing permit violations since 2022.
The funding will come from the state’s prison construction trust fund and will pay for new mechanical bar screens designed to remove large debris from raw sewage before it enters the main treatment process. Corrections officials have said inadequate screening has contributed to repeated pollution violations at the plant. Fine screens have already been installed, but larger infrastructure work has been slow to advance.
The plant, which serves the Cummins and Varner prison units in Lincoln County, is more than 50 years old and has not undergone major upgrades since 2001. A 2024 deadline to bring the treatment facility back into compliance was missed, and projected timelines from the Department of Corrections now estimate compliance may not be achieved until 2028 or even 2030.
Corrections Secretary Lindsay Wallace told the board the $1.95 million covers “off-the-shelf improvements” that can be completed relatively quickly but acknowledged that more significant and expensive upgrades remain ahead. The department originally explored building a brand-new treatment plant, but rising costs forced a pivot to expanding and modernizing the existing facility instead.
“We’re trying to get the most bang for our buck,” Wallace said. “This will be a significant step for us.”
For original reporting from Arkansas Advocate, click here.
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