The Leadwood Wastewater Treatment Facility is a domestic wastewater treatment facility located at the intersection of S. Missouri Route 8 and Wood St. in Leadwood, Missouri, St. Francis County. Domestic wastewater treatment facilities receive wastewater from residential homes, businesses and sometimes industrial sources. The facilities are designed to remove pollutants and other contaminants from the wastewater before discharging the treated water back into the environment. The Leadwood Wastewater Treatment Facility discharges to Tributary to Eaton Branch, approximately one-tenth of a mile upstream from its confluence with the Big River.
The facility is owned and operated by the city of Leadwood. The mechanical plant has not been fully functional since 2023. This resulted in the city of Leadwood being referred to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources' Water Pollution Control Branch-Compliance and Enforcement Section. The main goal of the department’s compliance and enforcement teams is regulatory compliance with environmental laws at Missouri's regulated facilities and sites.
Issues
Ongoing department investigations revealed seriously degraded and ineffective treatment equipment at the Leadwood Wastewater Treatment Facility, allowing only partially treated wastewater to be routinely released to the Big River. On June 29, 2026, the department's Southeast Regional Office conducted a concern investigation at the Leadwood Wastewater Treatment Facility in response to multiple concerns received from local residents. The department observed sludge being discharged directly from the wastewater treatment facility outfall to the river. The department met with city staff and the city’s engineer to develop a plan to eliminate the discharge of untreated wastewater to Big River. The city was able to get several aeration blowers functional but overall conditions of the facility are poor.
The department initiated an intensive water sampling schedule, including tests for E. coli at upstream and downstream locations from the facility's outfall on the Big River. On Aug. 3, 2026, the department took samples and water quality parameters at the facility's outfall, as well as upstream and downstream. On Aug. 5, 2026, department staff returned to the facility to conduct a thorough compliance inspection and to provide compliance assistance. The department collected samples as part of the inspection, including upstream and downstream locations on Big River to include the Bone Hole Access area, about three to four miles downstream of the city's outfall. During the inspection, the wastewater treatment facility was not fully operational, including the disinfection system.
Water tests taken in the Big River, both downstream and upstream of the facility’s output, show high levels of E. coli* contamination. Further water testing will determine whether other contaminants are being released at levels of health and environmental concern. The department is providing water quality monitoring data from the Big River to the Department of Health and Senior Services and Department of Conservation. Those departments will make public notice determinations based on our data.
*E. coli levels in natural water bodies can fluctuate dramatically over time, typically increasing after it has rained and decreasing when the weather is dry. Because of this phenomenon, people should always be careful when playing in and around lakes and streams.
Enforcement Actions
The department has been negotiating in good faith with the city of Leadwood since May 2026 to arrive at a long-term solution for wastewater treatment. On Aug. 4, 2026, the department’s Water Pollution Control Branch, Compliance and Enforcement Section received a signed Administrative Order on Consent from the city of Leadwood.
The order provides a framework for addressing longstanding issues with the city’s wastewater treatment facility. Working through that agreement will result in an engineering review and plans to upgrade the plant.
Progress
The department is looking into ways to mitigate the immediate issue at the treatment plant and identify long-term technical and financial solutions for wastewater treatment in Leadwood. While the order will provide a framework for a lasting solution to this issue, until that is achieved, the department and the city are working to make some temporary repairs that would quickly improve the facility’s operation and stop the current pollution. Specifically, the department and city agreed that the following work would be done immediately.
- The city of Leadwood is installing a replacement pump to move sludge and solids from the plant’s clarifier to the sludge holding basin. Adding the new pump is designed to allow the plant to begin treating the wastewater more efficiently, which should help further reduce E. coli levels in the treated water the plant releases to the Big River.
- The city’s engineer has some of the facility’s wastewater aeration functioning.
- The city of Bismark is on site helping to clean out a plugged wastewater return line. They have also agreed to take some of the city’s excess biosolids.
- The Missouri Rural Water Association is helping with a waste sludge management plan.
The city’s engineer is also investigating the availability and viability of special equipment that may help the facility with more consistent wastewater aeration. The department will work with the city to ensure this work proceeds on schedule. The department’s Financial Assistance Center is working with the city to help identify emergency funds through the Department of Economic Development’s Community Development Block Grant along with funds from the department for immediate repairs. The city and their engineers are also working with the department’s Financial Assistance Center to secure a small barrower loan to purchase equipment for long-term system upgrades of the wastewater treatment facility to ultimately build a new treatment facility.
Updates
On Aug. 10, 2026, the department continued its water sampling schedule in the Big River. Sampling upstream, at the facility’s outfall and downstream, show E. coli levels are slightly improving. However, those levels are still high, indicating the facility is still unable to effectively treat the city’s wastewater. Preliminary results from samples collected at the facility’s outfall show E. coli levels at 1,732.9 colony forming units per 100 milliliters (CFU/100mL), down from >2,419.6. Sample results from other locations show E. coli at the time was 150.0 CFU/100mL at the Mounts Big River Access, 73.8 CFU/100mL at the Hunt Street Leadwood Access and 80.1 CFU/100mL at the Bone Hole Swimming Basin.
Until the treatment plant’s capacity improves and starts attaining permitted effluent limits, people should avoid water contact (swimming, wading, etc.) and keep pets and livestock away from the water in that section of the Big River. Public health advisory signs are posted at access points on the Big River, from the Leadwood Access to Owl Creek Park in St. Francois County. The department will continue to make weekly site visits to monitor progress and to collect water quality samples.