Rain tends to throw a wrench in the plans of Lowndes County residents. 

Typically, it leads to backed up plumbing and overflowing sewage in yards, but this week, it also stopped the installment of five new sewage systems in unincorporated areas.  

Leaders of the Black Belt Unincorporated Wastewater Program have been on a years-long journey to solve the county’s sewage crisis that impacts hundreds of residents, and in partnership with several other organizations, they have a viable solution. 

Several new systems have already gone into the ground at no cost to the homeowners, and five more homes were set to receive help this week. Because the dark, rich clay soil in the Black Belt doesn’t allow for much water filtration, though, the group was unable to move forward with installations as soon as the rain started on Tuesday.