Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District

What Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District does

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) is a regional government agency established by Wisconsin state law in 1913 (consolidated into its current form in 1982) that provides wholesale wastewater treatment, stormwater management, and flood management services to 29 municipalities across 423 square miles in the Greater Milwaukee Area, serving 1.1 million residents. The agency's core infrastructure comprises two water reclamation facilities — Jones Island (330 MGD capacity, on the National Register of Historic Places) and South Shore (300 MGD, in Oak Creek) — plus a 28.5-mile Deep Tunnel system with 521 million gallons of stormwater storage completed in 1993. Since 1994, MMSD has captured and cleaned 98.4% of all water entering the regional sewer system, exceeding the EPA's 85% national goal, and reduced average sewer overflows from 50-60 per year to approximately 2 per year. The technology stack centers on activated sludge treatment, anaerobic digestion for biogas/electricity production, novel pilots such as the Proteus Upflow Media Filter and water-wash landfill gas upgrading, plus the Milorganite slow-release fertilizer brand (produced continuously since 1926 from recovered nutrients).

MMSD operates a wholesale utility model in which it does not bill end customers directly. Revenue is split across two budgets: capital charges funded primarily by property taxes, and operations & maintenance funded by sewer user charges based on usage, with 29 municipalities acting as retailers that pass costs through on customer water bills. Facility operations are outsourced under a long-running contract held by Veolia North America since 2008, currently being re-bid against Jacobs Solutions for a 10-year, $700 million contract covering 2028-2038. MMSD also pursues federal grants — including $19.88M from USDA (October 2024) and a share of a $27.8M U.S. Department of Energy decarbonization portfolio — to support capital projects, green infrastructure expansion (Greenseams floodplain preservation, Fresh Coast Guardians community program), and the Milwaukee Estuary AOC remediation effort. Go-to-market is entirely institutional: the eleven-member Commission sets policy, contractor procurement follows public-sector bidding, and community engagement channels (Blue Notes newsletter, facility tours, Household Hazardous Waste collection events) function as public education rather than demand generation.

Name

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District

Legal name

Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District

Website

https://mmsd.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1913

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

MMSD is a Wisconsin regional government agency providing wholesale wastewater treatment, stormwater management, and flood services to 29 municipalities serving 1.1 million people in Greater Milwaukee, operating two reclamation facilities and a 28.5-mile Deep Tunnel system funded by user charges and property taxes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wastewater Treatment and Water Reclamation Services

NAICS

Sewage Treatment Facilities (221320), Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Administration of Air and Water Resource and Solid Waste Management Programs (92411)

SIC

Electric, Gas & Sanitary Services (4900), Sanitary Services (4950)

akta.pro primary industry

Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) (EUANADAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Stormwater Management & MS4 Compliance Services (BPALAMAL), Detention, Retention & Storage Systems (Ponds, Tanks, Vaults) (EUANAEAD)

Keywords

• Wastewater treatment services
• Water reclamation
• Flood management
• Stormwater management
• Green infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Milwaukee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Sewer User Charges: Money for operations and maintenance budget is collected mainly through sewer user charges, which individual customers pay based on usage. Most communities bill these fees as part of their water bills.
2. Capital Charges / Property Taxes: Capital charges, such as property taxes, primarily fund the capital budget for construction projects and infrastructure improvements.
3. Milorganite Fertilizer Sales: Revenue from Milorganite slow-release nitrogen fertilizer helps reduce user-charge billing increases in MMSD's service area. Produced since 1926.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

MMSD is a regional government agency providing wholesale wastewater treatment and flood management services to 29 municipalities across 423 square miles in the Greater Milwaukee Area, serving 1.1 million people. Its core offering includes operating two water reclamation facilities (Jones Island and South Shore) using the activated sludge process, a 28.5-mile Deep Tunnel stormwater storage system, green infrastructure programs (rain gardens, bioswales, porous pavement), and water quality monitoring via the MMSD Central Lab. MMSD also produces Milorganite slow-release nitrogen fertilizer from recovered wastewater microbes.

Product overview

The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) operates as a regional government agency providing water reclamation and flood management services. The organization runs two water reclamation facilities (Jones Island and South Shore) that clean wastewater for over 1 million people across 29 communities in a 423-square-mile service area. The infrastructure portfolio includes the Deep Tunnel system for stormwater storage and the MMSD Central Lab for water quality monitoring. MMSD also produces Milorganite® fertilizer from recycled wastewater microbes. Community engagement is delivered through the Fresh Coast Guardians initiative and a Green Infrastructure Program offering rain gardens, rain barrels, porous pavement, and bioswales. The organization also provides a Rain Gauge Monitoring System and Open Data Portal for public access to geographic and rainfall data.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Milorganite: A slow-release nitrogen fertilizer made from kiln-dried microbes recovered during the wastewater treatment process. Produced since 1926, Milorganite is one of the nation's oldest recycling efforts, diverting over 10.5 billion lbs. of waste from landfills.

Products and services

• Wastewater Treatment Service Core service cleaning residential and industrial wastewater for more than 1 million people across 29 communities using the activated sludge process, achieving a 98.4% capture and cleaning rate.
• Jones Island Water Reclamation Facility Primary wastewater treatment facility located on the shores of Lake Michigan in Milwaukee, with a maximum treatment capacity of 330 million gallons per day, operated under contract by Veolia North America.
• South Shore Water Reclamation Facility Secondary wastewater treatment facility in Oak Creek, operating since 1968 with a maximum capacity of 300 million gallons per day. Uses anaerobic digesters to convert organic material into methane gas for on-site electricity production.
• Deep Tunnel Stormwater Storage System Underground tunnel system stretching 28.5 miles at 300 feet underground, providing 521 million gallons of stormwater storage capacity to reduce sewer overflows and basement backups during heavy rain events.
• Milorganite Fertilizer Slow-release nitrogen fertilizer produced from kiln-dried microbes recovered during wastewater treatment, manufactured using rotary kiln driers heated to 900–1,200°F and analyzed for 20+ parameters daily. Sales revenue offsets sewer user-charge billing increases.
• Green Infrastructure Program Community-scale stormwater management practices including rain gardens, rain barrels, porous pavement, green roofs, bioswales, native landscaping, green highways, and Green Schools programs that manage runoff where it falls.
• Flood Management Services Comprehensive flood management program covering Kinnickinnic, Menomonee, and Milwaukee river watershed projects, including Jackson Park, Pulaski Park, Wilson Park Creek, Lincoln Creek, Hart Park, Honey Creek, Underwood Creek, Valley Park, and Greenseams® floodplain preservation.
• Fresh Coast Guardians Initiative Community engagement program empowering homeowners, businesses, nonprofits, and government entities to adopt green infrastructure practices that protect Lake Michigan and regional waterways.
• MMSD Central Lab Water Quality Monitoring Water quality monitoring laboratory, the largest wastewater treatment lab in Wisconsin, operating seven days a week to monitor plant operations, area rivers, and Lake Michigan with daily analysis of 20+ parameters.
• Rain Gauge Monitoring System Real-time rainfall monitoring network with 20+ rain gauge stations across the service area, providing live rainfall data used for facility capacity management and public information.
• MMSD Open Data Portal Public geographic data portal providing open access to spatial data and metadata for viewing and downloading district geographic information.

Quantifiable outcome

• 98.4% of all water entering the regional sewer system captured and cleaned since 1994 (exceeds national EPA goal of 85%)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Black and VeatchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMMSD partnered with Black and Veatch, Argonne National Lab, Marquette University, and The Water Research Foundation for a decarbonization research project testing primary filtration systems at the South Shore Water Reclamation Facility to divert carbon from activated sludge processes, aiming to decrease sludge production by 43% and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• Argonne National LaboratorycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMMSD partnered with Argonne National Lab alongside Black and Veatch, Marquette University, and The Water Research Foundation for a decarbonization research project at South Shore Water Reclamation Facility to reduce sludge production by 43% and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• Marquette UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMarquette University is a research partner in MMSD's decarbonization project and collaborates on green infrastructure research, including using high-resolution drone images and machine learning models to identify and alert staff about maintenance needs of green infrastructure.
• The Water Research FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMMSD partnered with The Water Research Foundation alongside Black and Veatch, Argonne National Lab, and Marquette University for a project testing primary filtration systems to reduce sludge production and greenhouse gas emissions at South Shore Water Reclamation Facility.
• U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSGS and MMSD have been partners since 2000 in the Milwaukee Area Watercourse Corridor Study, applying a multi-disciplinary approach to monitor and assess stream water quality, aquatic communities, geomorphology, water and sediment, and streamflow. Results support watershed planning and decision-making.
• Veolia North AmericacoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerVeolia North America currently manages MMSD's wastewater treatment facilities (Jones Island and South Shore) under a contract in place since 2008. Veolia is competing against Jacobs Engineering for a new $700 million, 10-year contract (2028-2038). An independent third-party audit was authorized by MMSD Commission in June 2026 following whistleblower allegations.
• Jacobs SolutionscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerJacobs Engineering is competing with Veolia North America for the $700 million, 10-year operations and maintenance contract (2028-2038) to manage MMSD's Jones Island and South Shore wastewater treatment plants. MMSD Commission is expected to vote in late September 2026.
• Wisconsin Department of Natural ResourcescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWisconsin DNR co-administers the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) program with the EPA. These projects provide water quality benefits including reducing combined sewer overflow events, lessening nutrient pollution, and improving Lake Michigan and regional rivers.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MMSD_MKE

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District