Equivalent Residential Units (ERUs) Currently Available

On October 3, 2022 the Sandy City Council adopted a temporary moratorium, stopping acceptance of new land use applications that propose new sewer connections, to give sewer system improvements time to catch up with the community’s growth and aging infrastructure.  In March 2023, the Council adopted Resolution 2023-07 extending the timeline of the temporary moratorium to October 3, 2023.  The City took this action in coordination with the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as part of ongoing enforcement proceedings under the Clean Water Act. 

Subsequently, on June 5, 2023, City Council approved a consent decree to settle the enforcement proceedings from DEQ and the EPA relating to past permit violations incurred by the City’s wastewater treatment system. The consent decree includes terms that differ from the moratorium that was extended by Resolution 2023-07, the most significant of which is that it allows up to 300 equivalent residential units (ERUs, a measure of sewer flow equal to that typically generated by a single family detached dwelling) of new connections and additional flows through existing connections. This higher ERU allowance reflects the anticipated capacity improvements resulting from the work the City has performed on the wastewater treatment system over the past year. ERUs are deducted from the 300 count at time of building permit issuance, not at time of building permit submission.  

On June 21, 2023, the Sandy City Council adopted Resolution 2023-27 which allows up to 300 ERUs. On November 20, 2023, the City Council adopted Resolution 2023-34, extending the moratorium to June 20, 2024. A ‘stress test’ of the wastewater system was performed in 2023 to measure its capacity, followed by analysis of the resulting data and a series of negotiations between the City and regulatory agencies. In their April 2024 approval letter, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Oregon DEQ “recognize(d) the progress that the City has made towards increasing capacity, including but not limited to significant inflow and infiltration reduction.”  Their approval raises the cap on Sandy’s wastewater system from 300 new equivalent residential units (ERUs) to 570 ERUs, with an approved pathway for the City to receive an additional 190 ERUs once further conditions are met.

The City Council is scheduled to hold a hearing on adoption of a new moratorium at 7:00 p.m. on June 3, 2024 at Sandy City Hall. As with the moratorium adopted on June 20, 2023, this will be a new moratorium rather than a renewal, due to a significant change in the terms of the moratorium based on additional capacity that has recently become available.

Below is a table showing the number of ERUs currently available.  Please contact our Development Services Department if you have questions.