Testing the waters

Voters in Spokane and Kootenai counties favor decisive action to improve the quality of the Spokane River, even if it means opening their wallets and putting up with some inconvenience.

According to a survey conducted in July by a consortium of local government and industrial groups, and made public Wednesday, a majority favored banning phosphates from dishwasher detergents and fertilizers, switching houses from septic tanks to sewer systems, reusing treated sewage for irrigation and installing state-of-the-art treatment technology at local sewage plants.

They’d be willing to spend $10 more a month on sewer bills to clean up the river, but don’t want the level of Lake Coeur d’Alene lowered or dams on the Spokane River removed.

“I think people are willing to make sacrifices to do the right thing. This community is environmentally sensitive, particularly when it relates to something like the Spokane River or Spokane aquifer, which are vital to our community’s survival,” said Spokane City Council President Dennis Hession.

Earlier this week, local government officials, Washington State Department of Ecology scientists and environmental group representatives announced plans to pursue local bans on phosphates in dishwasher detergents and fertilizers.

The poll indicates that residents would be receptive to such a move. Of those surveyed, 59 percent in Kootenai County and 61 percent in Spokane County said they favored prohibiting phosphates in dish detergents. A lawn fertilizer phosphate ban garnered 55 percent approval in Spokane County and 51 percent in Kootenai County.

Pollsters questioned 350 Spokane County voters and 150 Kootenai County voters. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

“I think people had a pretty good handle on the issues,” said Sierra Club attorney Rachael Paschal Osborn.

Mining industry pollution, industrial waste and sewage were cited by those polled as the major sources of contamination facing the river. And 81 percent said that state-of-the-art systems should be used at sewage treatment plants, even if it means their sewer bills will increase.

“It was a pleasant surprise to see people understand the river has problems, and that they favor state-of-the-art treatment technology and they’re willing to pay for it,” said Paschal Osborn.

A $10 per month increase was deemed acceptable by 52 percent of respondents, though 18 percent said they wouldn’t approve of any sewer bill increase to clean up the river. The remainder were uncertain or willing to spend $30 to $100 more in increased sewer charges per month.

But respondents were only willing to take their sacrifices so far. A majority opposed limiting lawn watering and just 36 percent favored lowering the summer water level of Lake Coeur d’Alene.

The Spokane River Stewardship Group, which paid for the $18,000 survey, includes Spokane County, the city of Spokane, Avista Utilities and Inland Empire Paper Co.

Inland Empire Paper is a subsidiary of Cowles Publishing, which also owns The Spokesman-Review.