Wastewater Department

The Altoona Wastewater Department is responsible for operating and maintaining the City’s wastewater system. This system includes over 100 miles of public sanitary sewer pipes as well as 2 lift stations.

Information on the City’s regular maintenance routines can be found here: City Maintenance Routines
Utilities Emergency Number Image

WRA
Altoona has a contract with the Des Moines Wastewater Reclamation Authority (WRA) for wastewater treatment. More information on the WRA can be found here

Reporting Sewer Issues
If you are in the Altoona’s service area and experience a problem with your drains, you may call and receive a free inspection from the City Wastewater Department Staff to help you identify the problem. Most problems are in the home and are the homeowner’s responsibility to repair; however, it’s important you do not delay in addressing an issue. Sewer issues can affect more than one resident and need to be corrected as soon as possible.

When you have drain issues call the Wastewater Department at (515) 313-6190. For non-emergencies, please call between the hours of 7:30am and 4:00pm. However, in an emergency situation, that number will roll over to an on-call staff member.

You can also report issues online here.

Utility Billing
Information on sewer fees, paying utility bills, or setting up new service can be found on the following Utility Billing pages:

New Utility Customers       Pay Your Utility Bill Online       Utility Rates

Sanitary Sewer Connection Fee Districts
As the City of Altoona continues to grow, sanitary sewer must be made available to new development areas. In order to equitably distribute the cost of expanding the sewer system, the City establishes sanitary sewer connection fee districts. Sewer connection fees are established for each district, with the purpose of recouping the cost of providing sanitary sewer to the district. The existing fee districts are described in Chapter 99 of the Altoona City Code.

You can also view a map of the existing fee districts here:

Altoona Sanitary Sewer Connection Fee Districts

City Code

Chapter 95-100 of the Altoona City Code pertain to the City’s wastewater system. These chapters can be viewed by clicking the links below:

Chapter 95 – Sanitary Sewer System

Chapter 96 – Building Sewers and Connections

Chapter 97 – Use of Public Sewers

Chapter 98 – Wastewater Service Charges

Chapter 99 – Benefited Sewer Districts

Chapter 100 – Regulation of Industrial Wastewater, Commercial Wastewater and Hauled Waste