Spokane7
58°
June 7, 2011 in City
Tribe’s river PCB complaint jeopardizes treatment plant
Concerns about cancer- causing agent could seriously delay opening of facility
Work is almost complete on two solid waste digesters at the Spokane County Water Reclamation Facility on Monday.
(Full-size photo)(All photos)
A permit that was to have been issued last week for Spokane County’s new $173 million sewage treatment plant is on hold.
State and federal environmental regulators are to meet Wednesday with Spokane Tribe officials to discuss tribal concerns.
Until recently, dissolved oxygen has been the primary issue, but the tribe complained late last month that the proposed permit sets no specific limit on cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs.
“The new Spokane County permit limit for PCBs must be set at undetectable levels,” tribal Chairman Gregory Abrahamson said in a May 27 letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Efforts Monday to reach the tribe for comment were unsuccessful, but Abrahamson’s letter said the tribe is concerned because fish would be “a significant food source” for its members except for PCBs.
The Spokanes, whose ancestral homelands bordered the Spokane River, have historically been a fishing tribe.
County officials say strict enforcement of the tribe’s standard – a level that can’t be detected in laboratory tests – ultimately could prevent use of their new treatment plant.
Utilities Director Bruce Rawls also fears an extended delay could cost “a few hundred thousand dollars a month” – in part because construction of the plant is about two months ahead of schedule.
Performance tests are now expected to begin in August. If all goes well, the plant could go into operation in November.
Rawls said the county’s design-build-operate contract with CH2M Hill leaves the county vulnerable to delay-based damage claims. The company already has assembled a staff to operate the plant, and some employees have moved from other states.
Rawls said county officials have four or five weeks to decide whether to start testing the plant at 1004 N. Freya St.
Once the testing starts, the plant must remain in at least minimal operation to keep its sewage-munching bacteria alive and to protect membrane filters that cost about $10 million. The county would have to treat a small amount of effluent and send it to the city of Spokane treatment plant.
One way or the other, the county would be in the position of a family that buys a new house before selling its old one.
Currently, the county pays the city to process all of its sewage, but the plant is running short of capacity. County officials decided to build their own plant because of a looming construction moratorium in areas they serve.
Washington Department of Ecology managers had planned to issue a draft permit for the new plant on June 1, triggering a 60-day public comment period. On May 27, though, the Spokane Tribe objected in a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
In addition to the PCB issue, tribal officials argued the state shouldn’t be allowed to give the county a permit before the EPA issues permits to Spokane River dischargers in Idaho, establishing a cleanup plan for the entire river.
Last summer, Post Falls, Coeur d’Alene and the Hayden Area Regional Sewer Board filed suit in federal court, saying they got too small a share of the river’s waste load allocation for phosphorus and other oxygen-robbing substances.
“We don’t want to issue permits that people are upset about,” said Jani Gilbert, an Ecology spokeswoman. However, “We want to get them out as quickly as possible,” she said.
Gilbert said the Ecology Department was moving ahead with Spokane County’s draft permit with the expectation that the Idaho dischargers’ lawsuit would be resolved during a 60-day comment period. If that happened, a final permit could be issued shortly afterward, helping Spokane County meet its deadline, she said.
“I think there is a desire that we get all the permits done at relatively the same time, as much as we can,” said Mike Lidgard, an EPA discharge permit manager.
Lidgard said Wednesday’s meeting will help his agency better understand the tribe’s and Ecology’s position, with the goal of finding common ground.
As troublesome as the dissolved-oxygen problem is, the PCB issue is worse, according to Rawls.
The county has no backup plan in case it can’t meet river discharge standards for PCBs.
Treated wastewater could be discharged onto county land at Saltese Flats from March through October, when dissolved oxygen is worst. But, Rawls said, use of Saltese Flats isn’t feasible in winter months and PCBs are a year-round problem.
The Spokane Tribe’s PCB standard is much stricter than the state’s limit of 170 picograms per liter. The tribe’s limit is 3.37 picograms per liter, which Rawls said is the equivalent of finding four pennies in a three-fourths-mile cube of pennies.
PCBs are a critical issue for the tribe, which has fishing rights on the lower Spokane River and parts of the Columbia River, according to Abrahamson’s letter. In order for the tribe’s members to safely eat fish from the river, PCB levels must come down significantly, the letter said.
Ecology Department officials said the new permits will focus on gradual PCB reductions.
All Washington dischargers would have to start monitoring for PCBs. At the end of three to five years, the monitoring data would be used to set limits, said Dave Moore, Ecology’s Spokane River water quality manager.
In addition, the dischargers would have to establish controls to keep the long-lived pollutants from getting into their system in the first place.
“We’re trying to get those PCB limits as low as we can, and work toward those tribal limits,” Moore said.
Achieving the PCB limits established by the tribe will take “many generations,” he said. “We think this is the way to get expedient progress on PCB reductions, and not fight (for years) over establishing a standard.”
Rawls said Spokane County is committed to the approach outlined by Ecology, and the county’s new treatment plant can help.
He said the plant will remove 80 to 90 percent more PCBs than the city of Spokane plant that currently treats county sewage.
Man dies following early Saturday accident 
oneanddone on June 07 at 5:01 a.m.
Hey Spoky, you must be a long lost relative. Very well put. Couldn’t agree more, especially about the shakedown comment.
SpokyDaBear on June 07 at 5:48 a.m.
I’m sure if a reporter were to follow the money, they would see that the Tribe learned how to do this sewer treatment plant shakedown from a conference with other tribes that told them how many millions they got for suing a city over the same thing.
The white guilt folks, plus the Tribe’s annointed Mary Verner, will pay out to the Tribe millions of our dollars.
Watch your sewer/water bill go up with a new tag line, water treatment mitigation fee when it should read Spokae Tribal Shakedown fee.
CougarGold on June 07 at 6:12 a.m.
Spokay - Mary Verner and the City aren’t the ones being challenged. It’s the County’s new plant.
Spokane_Citizen on June 07 at 6:25 a.m.
Neither Spokydabear, or oneanddone, have been known to actually fully read a story before adding their racist rants. Bigots never let facts get in the way.
Ninch on June 07 at 6:38 a.m.
FYA: To Diana… the “Golden Corral” comment albeit very irrelevant is no less racist than others (and both references have been flagged). You have also accepted that Indians eat mostly fatty foods and are mostly fat. Such stereotypical thinking is wrong on all levels. Think about that.
P.S. I know lots and lots of Spokane Indians, and right now I can think of no one that meets the criteria of the stereotypes discussed above (in “size” and “shakedowns”).
Ignorance = hate.
Diana on June 07 at 6:42 a.m.
FYA to Ninch…Tell it to Spoky. I have done nothing of the kind. Think about that.
D Statler on June 07 at 6:47 a.m.
It would be nice to eventually eat a fish from the Spokane River. The biggest salmon in the world use to jump the Spokane falls. I can understand why the indians are mad. We DO need to achieve higher standards in treatment facilities. You goofs are misled if you think the city won’t raise your rates without the Indians help. Personally, I am glad someone is watching.CH2M HILL is not the most trustworthy corporate citizen. :^(
Ninch on June 07 at 6:49 a.m.
Back to the story— I find it very interesting that the Spokane Tribe has higher environmental standards than Washington State… And when it comes to water use rights, the Spokane Tribe has significant status. That the Washington Department of Ecology is fast-tracking the permit for a “design-build” project for Spokane County is troublesome from any viewpoint.
If the Spokane Tribe wanted to sue, they would be suing under federal laws (not state regulations) and most likely win. They would not be suing for money but rather for clean water. All need to realize that tribal governments have become very sophisticated (and successful) regarding legal issues regarding the environment (e.g. water and fish).
BTW: Thinking that Indians are less intelligent than others is “racist.”
Ninch on June 07 at 6:54 a.m.
Sorry, Diane…but you stated that Spoky “TONED DOWN the racism a little,” when in fact his comments are just as egregious as before. You got caught in the trap of “degrees” of racism and thus appeared to be agreeing with his stereotypical comments.
Ninch on June 07 at 6:58 a.m.
BTW: Regarding “mercury” in fish… the impact is dependent on the fish species, how long the fish has been exposed to pollutants, and how many fish are eaten.
The existence of mercury should not be a justification for adding PCBs to the pollutants.
MrBloggy on June 07 at 6:58 a.m.
the haters
crawl from
under rocks
pcb coated
river rocks
brains corroded
stupid
ignorant
worthless
oxygen suck machines
hate away
fear monkeys
eat many redband
trout
now is the time
for you
to get drunk
and tube the river
losers
http://youtu.be/bnfXi1yHcuM
DickAdams on June 07 at 7:11 a.m.
Cougar Gold:
Last time I checked, the city of Spokane is located in Spokane County.
MrBloggy on June 07 at 7:14 a.m.
Why did you need to check?
reservedparking on June 07 at 7:39 a.m.
Would have been nice if the County had perhaps checked with those affected downstream *before* the proverbial effluent hit the fan… or in this case, current.
monarch on June 07 at 8:28 a.m.
I’d like to know more about the source of the PCBs. Why can’t we stop them at the source? And if we can’t, shouldn’t the source of the PCBs pay for the extra resources needed to bring the levels down? Is this another case of corporate welfare where the polluters get the profits while the taxpayers pick up the costs of their pollution? Is the paper company owned by this newspaper a source of the PCBs? Thank goodness the Spokane tribe is looking out for the health of the river and the health of those who use it!
lafleur10 on June 07 at 8:29 a.m.
After reading this story the question that should be asked is why the County is spending over $150 million on a treatment plant that can’t legally discharge to the Spokane River? Surely they realized when they started construction that the law prohibits discharging pollutants above water quality standards.
Maybe instead of calling the Tribe to ask why they are trying to uphold the law, the Spokesman should be asking the County Commissioners why they are trying to break the law…
Atticus on June 07 at 8:34 a.m.
Most of the PCB’s that make it downriver are discharged at the Cowles owned Inland Paper company in Millwood.
That is a long established. fact.
CougarGold on June 07 at 8:43 a.m.
Dick - The City has its own plant that the County is currently using for part of their treatment. The intent is for the County to have their own plant that only treats water from outside the City, particularly in the Valley where some 30,000 septic tanks have been decommissioned and put into the sewer system. The County has ownership and jurisdiction for this particular plant. The City, who the County would still use to some extent, is developing their own agreement for PCB’s, independent of the County’s ownership.
As for ‘fast tracking’ a permit, this has been going on for about ten years. Phosphorus has been the focus. It’s only been of late (very late) that the PCB demand on effluents has become a hot topic. PCB’s are everywhere and in everything. It will be very difficult and very expensive to reduce them to levels demanded by the Tribe. And for those that are concerned about wastewater rates, just wait. You ain’t seen nothin’ yet….
Give the Spokane Tribe a permit for the Airway Heights Casino in exchange for the DOE’s plan to eliminate PCB’s over time and call it a day. Tribe wins, rate payers win, everybody’s mutually dissatisfied.
de3 on June 07 at 8:53 a.m.
The Inland Empire paper mill does discharge PCBs directly into the river, per previous SR reporting and has been working to reduce those discharges (http://www.spokesmanreview.com/pf.asp?date=050803&id=s1347344)
So did the Kaiser Trentwood plant and the Spokane Industrial park in the past. No one knows who all the dischargers were but the river above the Upriver dam is heavily polluted with PCBs, says the state ecology department (http://www.ecy.wa.gov/urbanwaters/spokaneriver.html). These will continue to leak into the water regardless of what is done at the sewer plants.
Septic tanks have been eliminated, in part, as a shell game of “credits”: “Rawls said selling phosphorus credits – earned by eliminating septic tanks in Spokane Valley – could benefit sewer ratepayers.” (http://www.spokaneriver.net/?p=2587). Homeowners pay to eliminate their septic tanks but the credit goes to the government.
Homeowners have to replace good, working septic drain fields with expensive sewer hookups. The main purpose of the sewers, however, is to increase land development density - while water quality is a issue, its a red herring. Lots needed to have space for the current septic drain field, plus space for a future replacement. Once the sewer line is in, the density of development increases and homes can be built on much smaller lots (and they have been throughout my neighborhood, starting the day the new sewer line was completed). The sewer lines are a subsidy to property developers, paid for by existing homeowners.
terrymr on June 07 at 9:04 a.m.
The county still has me puzzled on sewer hookups - they said a few years ago that they didn’t have capacity for everybody with new sewers to connect, now they’re back to enforcing mandatory hookups in the same areas, yet they don’t even have a permit for the new plant.
Just a revenue raising measure ?
D Statler on June 07 at 9:18 a.m.
PCB,mercury,effluent,hot water temps The food chain in the river is effected by all of it. ALL species living in and using the river including you and me are effected. That neon green stain on the river bottom below KAISER can not be from anything good.Happens to be the same color as the rolling lubricants used there. These corporate poluters should not be able to discharge directly into the river. Forcing these heavy poluters to hook to our NEW treatment facility is a better solution.Monitoring of discharges into the river from fewer central locations consistantly has to be better. AVISTA has not done much to clean up the pools above their dams lately either.Record corporate profits would suggest now is a great time to get buisy. Quit hiring expensive attourneys and get it done!
Somebody needs to keep watch on our precious river. Thanks to the Spokane Tribe for your efforts.
RedCedar on June 07 at 9:31 a.m.
What’s missing from this article and from the comments is any mention of what constitutes and “undetectable level” and what level is harmful. This ought to be about science, not politics, and yet all we have is a demand that the PCB be reduced to whatever level current lab tests can’t detect. I’m pretty sure that’s in the parts-per-trillion range these days. Perhaps next year it will be parts parts-per-quadrillion. perhaps someday they’ll be able to tell if there’s one molecule of PCB anywhere in the entire tank of water. Does that mean it will be harmful to anyone?
Why you start looking at what’s in water, even “pristine” mountain stream water, at levels of parts per trillion, all kinds of “toxic” things show up. What ought to matter is cleaning up the sewage effluent to the point where it doesn’t harm people or wildlife, not chasing “zero” levels of certain frighteningly-named chemicals when “zero” is simply not achievable in the real world.
This is another case where “perfect” is the enemy of “good”. And yes it will probably ultimately be solved by paying money.
lafleur10 on June 07 at 9:48 a.m.
Atticus - not that I’m in the business of defending IEP, but according to the Dept. of Ecology the largest source of PCBs to the River is the City of Spokane’s storm drain system. That is why they were sued by the Spokane Riverkeeper - to reduce those discharges. IEP contributes a small amount on PCBs compared to the City.
RedCedar - the levels that are protective of human health are already in the parts per quadrillion (170 ppq) and those levels are detectable. The science shows that people that each fish with high levels of PCBs can suffer neurological issues, they can have immune deficiencies and PCBs are a potential carcinogenic. That is why we have a fish advisory in Spokane warning that eating any fish in the river within the City is bad for your health.
Keeping PCBs out of our river and therefore out of our fish is a worthy goal and I’m glad that the Tribe is trying.
CougarGold on June 07 at 9:50 a.m.
RedCedar - Right on, on two fronts. First, undectable levels of PCB’s is likely impossible. It’s everywhere. A good example of over-reaching detection is some stream (don’t remember the name) in the Coeur d’Alene basin that is targeted for clean-up due to detectable levels of lead. As it turned out, there had never been any mining in that drainage and the lead was naturally occurring and came into the stream through rain and snowmelt. This was pointed out to EPA and they’ve not removed the stream from clean-up to date. Whether or not lead is a naturally occurring element seems to be beside the point of the effort.
Your comment about ‘perfect being the enemy of good’ is also spot on and I’ve used it myself in public testimony. We’ve hung the Phosphorus TMDL up so long in legal wrangling that it’s cost the County ratepayers double for the cost of the new treatment plant due to ongoing delays, all the while more phosphorus has continued to be either discharged through older technology or groundwater seepage from septic tanks not yet taken into the treatment system. Further delays only add to the problem. It’s a field day for the attorneys, further cost to the citizens, and delayed action for the health of the river. This needs to be moved ahead to where we are receiving benefit for all the money being spent.
monarch on June 07 at 9:51 a.m.
Thanks to de3’s links above, we know that Kaiser Trentwood and Inland Paper (the same owners of the Spokesman Review) are significant contributers to the problem. Anyone know if they have paid anything towards this problem? I think people should understand this is a classic case of “privatize the profits and socialize the costs” otherwise know as corporate welfare. The taxpayers are picking up the costs while the corporations are walking away with the profits. We seem to repeat this type of arrangement constantly, while the poor, low-income, and disabled are vilified for receiving public help to keep them above the poverty line and make sure their children are housed, fed, and schooled. Makes me mad as hell!
CougarGold on June 07 at 9:54 a.m.
lafluer10 - It is my understanding that mercury is the primary reason for the fish advisory, not necessarily PCB’s, although I’m not suggesting that the PCB’s aren’t without concern. The DOE has a planned, phased program implementation for reduction of PCB’s. Instant gratification is the norm for our society though so it’s not surprising to hear the demand. However, it’s not without a huge pricetag and the citizens are the ones who will be footing the bill. When sewer rates exceed Avista’s monthly bills, the crying will be heard loud and clear.
Atticus on June 07 at 9:57 a.m.
monarch: Welcome to Spokane…
CougarGold on June 07 at 10:01 a.m.
Monarch - IEP and Kaiser are, comparatively, minor contributors of PCB’s to the river relative to the City’s storm water system. In IEP’s case, the source is newspaper ink that comes from their recycling stock. The papers are washed with the ink carrying the PCB’s. Should we quit recycling? Should we be demanding a different ink that is PCB free? Is IEP really the true source or is it some other source point that is culpable? Many more questions could be asked but it would seem that it will take time to vette the subject relative to how we live as humans. We will have an impact on our environment, lest we revert back to living in caves, no dependence on our environment for survival. I don’t know the answers but, aside from a mass suicide, we will continue to impact our environment in ways that many find distasteful. But again, what is the right action?
riverlaw on June 07 at 10:19 a.m.
A copy of the Tribe’s letter is available at: http://www.spokaneriver.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Spokane-Tribe-Letter-NPDES-Permits.pdf
beckyk on June 07 at 10:27 a.m.
The question about PCB sources is a good one. Here’s information from a Department of Ecology study:
Total PCB concentrations in the river increase in downstream stretches of the river. Researchers found that PCBs in Washington reaches of the river come from the following sources: contaminated stormwater in the city of Spokane (44 percent); municipal and industrial discharges (20 percent); Idaho at the state line (30 percent) and from the Little Spokane River (six percent). PCBs deposited in sediments from historical discharges also find their way into fish.
The industrial discharge includes Inland Empire Paper, a subsidiary of Cowles Co., which also owns The Spokesman-Review.
Becky Kramer
lafleur10 on June 07 at 11:02 a.m.
Cougergold - the fish advisory is for lead and PCBs and mercury for women who are pregnant. I know you keep saying that PCBs are a “new” issue raised recently. Sorry that ignores the evidence. Ecology started PCB studies on the river in 1981 and we have known for over 15 years that PCBs are a serious issue in our watershed.
That dischargers and the regulator spent 13 years focused on phosphorous doesn’t relieve the requirement that PCB discharges be reduced. Also, please don’t pretend that Ecology wanted a “phased” in approach to PCBs. We both know they completely ignored the issue and only stepped up because of pressure from the environmental community and now the Tribe.
valleyman on June 07 at 11:36 a.m.
I wonder if the Spokane Tribe finally found a way to blackmail the County into backing their new Casino plans out on the West Plains???
If I were a betting man, I’d go out to the casino right now and bet the farm that if the County comes out in favor of the new Casino, the complaint about PCBs gets conveniently withdrawn…
Seems like a genius strategy from Abrahamson and the tribe… Sleazy but genius…
lafleur10 on June 07 at 11:42 a.m.
Daisy - We have these pesky things called laws. What these laws say is that downstream water quality standards must be met up upstream dischargers. The Tribe is a legally (see those darn laws can turn up anywhere) recognized entity and they have set their water quality standards more stringent because they have higher fish consumption.
So, upstream discharger must comply with their standard. The County plant can’t do this (it can’t even come close to complying with WA state standards). The State will not prevail and the County will not prevail. If they would, they wouldn’t have agreed to meet with the Tribe and delay the permit. They know they will lose and want to talk to the Tribe.
Way to once again show an immense amount of ignorance on a subject you know nothing about. Well played.
greenlibertarian on June 07 at 11:55 a.m.
lafleur10 on June 07 at 11:42 a.m.
Daisy - We have these pesky things called laws.
Dazed is a troll, don’t feed it.
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http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/jun/14/investigators-seek-source-pcbs-flowing-spokane-riv/
MrNatural on June 07 at 12:06 p.m.
I for one am glad to see this dialogue regarding PCB’s in the Spokane environment. I think we are making progress albeit a bit slowly due to the high costs and technological constraints hampering our abilities to address this toxic contaminant. Other approaches aside from waste water storm water treatment will be necessary and need pubic support in order for complete environmental cleanup to come to fruition
The new treatment facility is a step in the right direction for processing the myriad of contaminants in our community’s waste water including PCB’s. I also think the tribe’s stance is a worthy goal provided that feasibility is allowed in the interim. We can all win if we put our support behind the efforts needed to control and eliminate PCB’s that inundate our regions environment.
Thanks Spokesman for giving this a high profile and keeping this in the public eye. Thanks Ecology for all the work you do in investigating the prevalence of PCB’s in our environment and working toward feasible and effective policies to clean up our river. And thank you to the local environmental activists for keeping watch and maintaining the pressure necessary to support a clean and healthy river.
Dazzeetrader11 on June 07 at 12:11 p.m.
Well, if those law impede things ( like essential sevices) change the law. Very and her tribe are asking a bit much. Bet she gets ha job with them whne she’s sent packing.
This is soley being done by her tribe to block function of sewage pant that’s been in process for more than 2 years in construction. Why now? Have an answer to that Lafeur or greenie? Bet you don’t.
The tribe is using a an outdated law because they want something. They’ve had years to object. Obviously Spokane (the city) or SPokane ( the county) isn’t going to move to anothe rlocation. There will be sewage waste. PCB’s well…that another issue isn’t it? Law needs to be changed.
I bet the commissioners will figure out a way. So what DO the Indians want? Something like Money? Yep..it’s about money for the natives. It’s all they want.Hard to know when I’m 3000 miles away. Maybe Valleyman’s right…in the end though..it’s about the hypocrits from the tribe trying to fleece someone.
Poor dears…put upon again.
MrNatural on June 07 at 12:13 p.m.
http://www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/1103013.html
This is the link for the Spokane River PCB Source Assessment. A very well done report.
lafleur10 on June 07 at 12:22 p.m.
Daisy - just because you make things up doesn’t make them true. The Tribe and the environmental community have commented EVERY single step of the way on the county plant. They have said over and over that the plant will contribute PCBs to a river that is already impaired for PCBs, which is illegal. The county ignored the tribe. Is that the tribe’s fault or the county’s?
As for outdated law? What are you talking about? The “outdated” law has been around for 40 years, it is called the Clean Water Act and it is used every day around the country to protect the uneducated masses that want “essential” services but don’t want to pay the true costs of those services. Instead of blindly attacking people with no basis in fact, maybe you should thank them for protecting you and your family.
You keep talking about Verner like she has some play in this. This is between the tribe and the county. The city isn’t involved.
Finally, the Clean Water Act doesn’t allow payment of damages. Money can’t flow from the dischargers to those that complain.
Nice try though. Except for everything that you said, you nailed it!!!
MrNatural on June 07 at 12:27 p.m.
http://www.doh.wa.gov/ehp/oehas/pubs/334147pcbpbde.pdf
Link to the State Department of Health publication on the Spokane River including PCB’s, PBDE’s and Heavy Metals
Dazzeetrader11 on June 07 at 12:35 p.m.
Lafleur…grow a brian. If the law doesn’t suit the population, change the law. Pretty much sums it up. Abrahamson and Verner are trying a stunt. NO MONEY FOR THE TRIBE……….We don’t need gambling casinos. We need sewage treatment.
I’m for changing the law not fighting for an outdated law. Sierra Club and Indians..pfffft…it’s about the funtion of a city and a county. I wouldn’t be blackmailed or greenmailed ( in this case).
Our infrastructure needs to work NOT be blocked from working by using a law that doesn’t fit. Afterall this isn’t murder (not right or wrong) this is about functioned cities. It’s about money kids. Just money.
riverlaw on June 07 at 12:38 p.m.
Grow a brian? Who is brian? How do we grow a brian?
riverlaw on June 07 at 12:39 p.m.
Food for thought — “Decades after fish and wildlife advisories went into effect, industrial pollutants found in the blood of Native American youths and young adults show that the younger generation is still at risk from long-banned contaminants.”
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/newscience/mohawk-teenagers-have-a-legacy-of-pcb-pollution
greenlibertarian on June 07 at 1:02 p.m.
Do not respond to the ignorant and racist rants of the troll.
CougarGold on June 07 at 1:25 p.m.
Mr. Natural @ 12:06 - Well said. Thank you for a reasonable outlook on this issue.
jimvw2 on June 07 at 1:27 p.m.
Leave it to Miss Dazee to inject this dialog with her own Club for Growth, racist John Birch Society rhetoric.
Let me guess. Is she hard at work on the Cathy Clone’s mayoral campaign?
Just so you know, genius, Mary Verner is not a Spokane Tribal member. And the tribal gambling permit is a federal and state decision. Neither the city nor the county has any say over it.
Thinly veiled bigotry is still bigotry Miss Dazee.
Vote Verner. If Dazee’s afraid of her she must be doing good for the rest of us.
voice_of_reason on June 07 at 1:40 p.m.
Just a thought - could this be resolved if we had Dazzee, Spoky, hawken, etc. drink Spokane City River water and eat Spokane City River fish for 30 days, ala Michael Spurlock’s “Supersize Me” documentary?
SMARTGUY on June 07 at 2:19 p.m.
Who cares what this tribe thinks, since when does a seperate country get to make US laws. If they are really not part of the US and can have casino gambling which is against the law in America. There should be gates at the reservation edge and they should require a passport to enter America. The idea of seperate countries inside the US borders should have been illegal in the first place.
mikeln on June 07 at 4:04 p.m.
Here’s a idea, dig a hole, put a pipe in it and put this water back in the aquafer were it came from. In space they drink recycled water and the last time I checked, we are in space.
Spokane_Citizen on June 07 at 6:31 p.m.
Dazzee.. Daisy…. Blondscence…..or whatever permutation of nonsense that floats your floundering and logic-free boat, I sincerely hope that other human beings do not depend upon you for advice…in fact, I’d even be concerned regarding your ability to properly care for pets.
You are indeed a troll; a high energy troll, but a troll nonetheless. Your comments (really nothing more than a foul stream of unconscious riffs) indicate that you truly have little understanding of complex issues, an inability to empathize with others, and a demonstrated hostility to non-whites. Fortunately, your era is at an end. Grownups are taking charge, while mudflinging little trolls are left in the catbox….where they belong.
greenlibertarian on June 07 at 9:38 p.m.
You are indeed a troll; a high energy troll, but a troll nonetheless. Your comments (really nothing more than a foul stream of unconscious riffs) indicate that you truly have little understanding of complex issues, an inability to empathize with others, and a demonstrated hostility to non-whites. Fortunately, your era is at an end. Grownups are taking charge, while mudflinging little trolls are left in the catbox….where they belong.
-Spokane Citizen.
Truer words were never spoken.
DO NOT FEED THE TROLLS!