The Daily World News Article
June 4, 1998
By Ryan Teague Beckwith - Daily World Writer
The mayor of Aberdeen vows to fight a $10,000 fine from state environmental regulators for releasing tons of mud and debris into the Wishkah River and wiping out fish habitat.
"What good does it do to take money out of our water fund and give it to the Department of Ecology?" Mayor Chuck Gurrad said Wednesday night. "To me, it doesn't make any sense."
Gurrad said he will meet with city staffers Friday to determine the best route to protesting the fine. The city may ask the state to reconsider, or file an appeal with the state Pollution Control Hearings Board.
The April 1 release occurred when maintenance workers with the city drained the pond behind the Malinowski Dam at the Wishkah Headworks to repair a broken sluice gate.
The rush of silty water probably killed large numbers of juvenile coho, chinook and steelhead and destroyed fish eggs, said Jeff Weathersby, spokesman for the state Department of Fish & Wildlife.
"We've got wild salmon and steelhead that are either being listed or facing an Endangered Species Act listing," Weathersby said. "Now is not a good time to be killing wild fish."
Terry Baltzell, manager of the downstream Long Live the Kings fish hatchery, applauded the state's move. "I think it's probably the only way that they can get a wake-up call down there on maintaining water quality," he said.
In addition to the fine from the Department of Ecology, the city also may face criminal charges from the state Department of Fish & Wildlife.
The penalties for violation of state water-protection laws range to up to a year in jail and a $5,000 fine for a municipality's public works director.
Jim Robertson, Aberdeen's public works director, had no comment Wednesday night. "It's a legal thing," he said.
A case of bad timing
All sides agree that the release was a case of bad timing. Spring is the most sensitive time of year for juvenile salmon and fish eggs, and the muddy water likely affected fish runs in a number of ways.
During the rush of water, smaller fry sought refuge in shallow areas off to the side of the river, Weathersby said. Later, when the river dried up, those fish were stranded.
A state habitat biologist said several miles of the river went dry for approximately four hours during the incident.
Silty water also scours the gravel where fish have laid their eggs, filling up the spaces between the rocks that hold valuable oxygen and smothering the eggs, Weathersby said.
Baltzell said the release did not harm his hatchery as much as he originally feared because he was able to shut off the river's flow into holding tanks and ponds.
But he said the damage is ongoing because the silt affects the entire food chain of the river.
The clay sediments released from the dam, light enough to float in water, tend to stick to rocks in the stream, killing algae that feed water-borne insects.
"It's important to keep the river clean the best you can year-round," he said.
Not the first time
The incident was not the first time that fish in the Wishkah River have been hurt by silt from the dam.
During two 100-year storms in March of 1997, an old log dam at the site failed, releasing years of sediment.
Aberdeen and Cosmopolis residents were advised to boil their water. The State Department of Health feared the muddy water contained microscopic parasites.
Baltzell estimated that the dam failure killed more than 30,000 fish in his hatchery.
The April 1 release was also more serious because of the built-up sediment leftover from the previous year.
Together with the $10,000 fine, the Department of Ecology ordered the city to come up with a plan for cleaning up the sediment.
Mayor Gurrad said the requirement was counterproductive to Department of Health orders.
"No way are we going to go up there and tinker with that dam and jeopardize the city water system," he said. "These two agencies don't seem to be coordinating their efforts."
Gurrad said the city would gladly clean up the sediment - once its $13 million water filtration plant is finished in 1999.
The mayor didn't have problems with some other state requirements, including an order that the city not release any more sediment into the river.
Looking up from a letter informing him of the fine, Gurrad smiled good-naturedly. "I'm sure we won't do that again," he said.