Lawton Closes 30-Year EPA Sewer Decree After Replacing 122 Miles of Pipe

Lawton’s long fight with its own sewer system is officially over. On Aug. 20, 2026, the city received full closure of its EPA consent decree, ending three decades of federal oversight that began when chronic sewer overflows landed Lawton under an administrative order back in the 1990s.

The numbers behind the milestone are striking. A 1996 study identified 283,000 linear feet of sewer lines needing replacement or upgrades. By the time the work wrapped, Lawton had replaced 647,445 linear feet across three phases, 228% more than the EPA required. The effort was funded in part by a $2.75 monthly sewer rehabilitation fee that generates just under $1 million per year.

Public Works Director Rusty Whisenhunt told the City Council the report had been“30 years in the making,”but he also cautioned that the work continues. Older concrete steel pipes keep deteriorating, and infiltration from private-side lines still challenges the system. The key difference now: Lawton sets its own repair schedule instead of answering to the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality. What’s your take on how the city handled this one?