Sunbury Municipal Authority
Departments & Services
The Municipal Authority of the City of Sunbury delivers essential services that support daily life across the community, including water, wastewater, flood control, and waste management.
Water Department
The Municipal Authority of the City of Sunbury Water Department is a municipally operated water supplier located at 1600 Market Street in Sunbury, PA.
The system draws its primary water supply from Little Shamokin Creek. During dry weather or drought conditions, water is supplemented from a secondary source at the Susquehanna River, with the intake located on the west branch of the river.
Once treated, water is delivered through a transmission and distribution system made up of more than 35 miles of pipeline. The system includes nearly 5,000 service connections and 159 fire hydrants, supporting both everyday use and fire protection needs.
The Water Department provides potable water to the City of Sunbury and a portion of Upper Augusta Township, serving an estimated population of approximately 10,000 residents.
Transfer Station & Recycling
The Sunbury Municipal Authority’s transfer station is located at 511 Fawn Lane, an extension of S. 4th Street. Originally constructed in 1984, the facility was owned and operated by the City of Sunbury until 1987, when it was transferred to the Authority.
The transfer station operates on a per-pound fee structure for customer use.
In addition to transfer station services, the Authority’s Solid Waste Department manages the City of Sunbury’s recycling program. This includes a recycling drop-off center that accepts glass (clear, brown, and green), aluminum, tin cans, magazines, cardboard, newspaper, and plastics #1 and #2 only.
A curbside recycling program is also in place for residents, collecting glass and aluminum. Together, these programs divert approximately 500 tons of recyclable material from landfills each year.
Wastewater Department
The Municipal Authority of the City of Sunbury owns and operates a wastewater treatment facility that serves approximately 9,905 residents within the City of Sunbury, as well as the Hamilton and Oaklyn areas of Upper Augusta Township.
The treatment plant uses a combination of physical and biological processes to meet required treatment standards. Treated effluent is discharged into Shamokin Creek under NPDES Permit No. PA 0026557.
Flood Department
The Sunbury Flood Reduction System was designed and constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and completed in 1952. The system is a certified FEMA levee that provides protection along the Susquehanna River, with more than 3 feet of freeboard above the 100-year flood event of 556,000 cfs. It also provided protection during the 1972 flood event, which reached approximately 620,000 cfs.
An additional 3+ feet of freeboard is provided along Shamokin Creek to manage flows of up to 16,000 cfs when the Susquehanna River reaches 556,000 cfs.
The Sunbury flood protection system is operated from a modern operations center located on Hillside Drive within the city and includes the following infrastructure:
- 12,300 feet of concrete floodwall
- 14,687 feet of earthen levee
- 4 telemetry stations
- 6 pumping stations with a combined capacity of 290,000 gallons per minute
- 6 closure structures totaling 237 feet
- 6 drainage structures
- 17 ponds and channels
- 18,571 feet of drainage pipes
- 95 gates
