A wastewater treatment plant manager in Saluda, South Carolina, has pleaded guilty to federal Clean Water Act violations after investigators found he concealed elevated E. coli levels and repeated untreated sewage discharges.

John Lorick, senior manager for the Saluda Commission of Public Works, admitted to diluting water samples to hide contamination caused by an inoperative chlorination system. Federal prosecutors said Lorick knowingly allowed the plant to violate its discharge permit 10 to 12 times annually from 2022 through March 2025. He also falsified records and reports and did not notify regulators or take steps to repair the system.

The plant released raw, untreated sewage directly into the Little Saluda River on dozens of occasions over more than three years. A discharge July 27-28, 2025, killed approximately 1,529 fish about a mile downstream, prompting an investigation.

Lorick faces a maximum sentence of three years in federal prison and fines ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 per violation. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Sherri Lydon accepted his guilty plea. Sentencing will take place at a later date.

The town plans to close its wastewater treatment plant by the end of the year as it connects to a new Saluda County Water and Sewer Authority facility built adjacent to the existing plant.