Plan to rid river of phosphorous almost complete

A yearlong regional collaboration to clean up the polluted Spokane River seems to be working.

The Washington Department of Ecology endorsed a multiyear, many-faceted attack on oxygen-gobbling phosphorous in the river that comes from sewage, polluted runoff and industrial discharges on Friday.

“Our goal is a healthy Spokane River,” said Dave Peeler, Ecology’s chief water regulator.

The goal of the plan: to cut phosphorous pollution from all sources in half over 20 years.

Peeler’s presentation Friday was Ecology’s first public response to detailed compliance proposals submitted last month by river dischargers and the Sierra Club. Under state law and the federal Clean Water Act, Ecology and the Environmental Protection Agency have the final say on discharge permits along the river and can veto plans that fail to protect dissolved oxygen, vital to fish survival and water quality.

Phosphorous promotes algae growth in the river, which diminishes dissolved oxygen.

Ecology’s goal is to cut daily “point source” phosphorous discharges from a current 195 pounds a day to approximately five pounds a day. “Point source” dischargers – the primary source of phosphorous – are municipal sewage treatment plants and industries with pipes in the river.

The dischargers have proposed a plan that starts with city sewage plant and industrial pilot projects to test various technologies to treat wastes, using some of the treated water to irrigate golf courses and parks. The discharger group includes the cities of Spokane and Spokane Valley, Spokane County, the Liberty Lake Sewer District, Coeur d’Alene, Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Co., Avista and Inland Empire Paper Co.

Peeler called the phosphorus cutback a “managed implementation plan.”

“It will take time and continuous effort … it must be under way on all fronts next year,” he said. Ecology will require a “checkup” every five years to ensure the plan is working. The plan requires:

•Improvements in wastewater technology to remove more phosphorous – the highest priority.

•Water conservation measures.

•Effluent re-use, which creates “Class A” reclaimed water that can be used for any purpose except human consumption.

•Aggressive control of “nonpoint” sources, including farm and subdivision runoff.

The plan would include a schedule to eliminate 14,000 septic tank systems that are leaching pollutants into the Spokane Valley/Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer. Spokane County is laying pipe to connect 10,000 septic tanks in the Valley to a sewer and will be done in 10 years, Spokane County Commissioner Todd Mielke said.

Ecology will seek legislative authority to contribute about a third of the money for a $1 million a year, 20-year program to curtail nonpoint phosphorous sources, Peeler said. The dischargers and EPA may split the balance, but the financial details haven’t been worked out, he said.

Following Ecology’s presentation, participants said they were cautiously optimistic. But they also stressed that many details remain unresolved.

“There’s lots to be ironed out, but it’s a good framework,” said Tom Eaton, EPA’s Washington operations manager.

In 2004, EPA challenged Ecology’s assurance that Spokane County would obtain a discharge permit for a new, $100 million sewage treatment plant in Spokane Valley, saying the river was maxed out on phosphorous.

Last month, the river dischargers sided with the county, saying it should be allowed to build the plant and get 20 years to meet phosphorous pollution standards – the same as existing plants. Environmentalists disagreed, citing federal regulations requiring a new pollution source in an impaired river to meet water quality requirements when it opens.

But now, Ecology’s new proposal “seems to leave an opening” for a new Spokane County treatment plant, said Spokane County Utilities Director Bruce Rawls at Friday’s meeting.

“There’s still a lot of work to do,” said Jack Lynch, Spokane’s deputy mayor.

Ecology’s multifaceted plan, which emphasizes water conservation and reuse, echoes many of the recommendations of environmentalists, said Tim Connor, of the Sierra Club. “We are very much encouraged by this,” he said.

“We’re in the home stretch,” Mielke said.

In addition to the phosphorous-dissolved oxygen issue, the Spokane River is included on the state’s “impaired waters” list for a litany of other problems: overly warm temperatures, heavy metals from a century of mining in North Idaho, PCBs and dissolved gas from dams.