GLUM COUNCIL: Consent decree ends city complaint over wastewater permit.
By Sharon Michael, The Chronicle, 7/14/98
Glum Chehalis city councilors Monday grudgingly authorized Mayor Bob Spahr to sign a consent decree settling the city's lawsuit against the state Department of Ecology over wastewater discharge permit conditions
The agreement commits the city to sewer system improvements to meet Ecology's directive to cease discharging treated wastewater into the Chehalis River during low-flow periods - usually between May and October
Spahr and Councilor Bud Hatfield were vocal about their reluctance to accept the consent decree. They wanted to hold off for another week until Ecology responds to Spahr's request that the agency reconsider its veto of aeration to help meet water quality standards
Megan White, Ecology's water quality program manager, agreed to further evaluate aeration technical data last week after Spahr complained to legislators at a House Agriculture and Ecology hearing
White said she expected to be able to give the city an answer by July 20. But Chehalis is running out of time
The city of Centralia and Darigold Inc., also parties to the Ecology lawsuit, already agreed to sign the consent decree. District Court Judge Robert J. Bryan set an Aug. 15 deadline for the executed agreement to be in his hands. Ecology is entitled to two weeks to review the final language in the decree, and Ecology will not look at the agreement until all plaintiffs have signed it
Hatfield said he doubted if Western civilization would come to a halt if the city delays approving the agreement until White responds on the aeration issue
But City Attorney Bill Hillier told the council: ''You're in the realm of Judge Bryan's court.''
Last month, Centralia Utilities Director Dick Southworth described Bryan to the citizens advisory committee as a no-nonsense judge who would not tolerate unnecessary delays
Hillier warned the Chehalis council that a delay in signing the agreement could cause the city to be severed from the consent decree.
''To jeopardize this agreement may not be a wise decision,'' he cautioned
If Centralia and Darigold sign the agreement without Chehalis, Chehalis would have to ''essentially start over,'' added City Manager Dave Campbell. ''We would probably have to deal with another attorney - and probably another (law) firm.''
It has been four years since Ecology formally released the results of its total maximum daily load (TMDL) study that caused the city and Darigold to file suit over wastewater discharge permit conditions that prohibited discharge into the Chehalis Reach from May to October
''I just want to say it's the biggest boondoggle ... and a burden on the citizens - all in favor?'' muttered Spahr. The council then voted unanimously to authorize Spahr to sign the agreement
Chehalis Public Utilities Director Barry Heid said the lawsuit, and subsequent settlement negotiations, gained the city the right to flow-based discharge restrictions rather than calendar-based restrictions.
''That alone saves us millions of dollars in potential capital and operating costs,'' Heid said. ''It also provides a higher level of environmental protection for the river.''
The negotiated agreement also gives the city more time to meet permit conditions. The city will have eight to 10 years from the date of the agreement, instead of five, to make necessary system improvements.
Ecology is obligated by the agreement to do all it can to help the city find grants and low-interest loans to help finance improvements necessary to meet permit conditions.
Engineering consultants Gibbs & Olson are developing the city's general sewer and facility plans. Evaluation of alternative methods of meeting wastewater discharge permit conditions are part of that process
Estimated costs to pipe wastewater discharge below the Skookumchuck River for discharge during low-flow periods is between $25 and $30 million dollars. That solution would result in substantial rate increases for Chehalis sewer customers.
The negotiated agreement calls for Chehalis to raise its average single-family sewer rates to 1.5 percent of the city's median household income within four months, and to make subsequent adjustments for inflation
But Heid and Hillier told the council the agreement does not prevent the city from continuing to investigate alternatives to piping its discharge downstream during low-flow conditions in the river
''It's a living document. It says right in the decree that it can be amended,'' Hillier said.
''Signing the consent decree also doesn't restrict us from continuing to work with DOE and applying political pressure to encourage DOE's consideration of innovative and/or less conventional solutions,'' Heid told the council
Sharon Michael covers Centralia and Chehalis city governments for The Chronicle. She can be reached by e-mail at smichael@chronline.com or by calling 807-8237
Back to Whats New Index Page
Back to CRC Index Page
Back to Community Page