EPA issues fines in Sand Creek Byway project

BOISE — The federal Environmental Protection Agency has fined the Idaho Transportation Department and a contractor the state hired for work on the Sand Creek Byway in northern Idaho. The EPA says an inspection in January found several violations of the federal Clean Water Act, including lack of sediment control and stabilization measures. The Idaho Statesman reports that the EPA wants the transportation department and Washington-based Parsons RCI, Inc., to pay a $65,000 penalty over the alleged violations. The byway is designed to route U.S. 95 out of downtown Sandpoint by building a bridge across Sand Creek and a three-lane highway. It is part of a series of huge construction projects in northern Idaho’s lake country that are designed to improve traffic safety in the tourist region.