Sierra Club weighs in on PCBs and Kaiser Appeals DO TMDL as Spokane River discharge permits move forward
August 9, 2011
Spokane River Forum Staff
Regulatory jousting over Spokane River water quality continues.
In mid-July, Sierra Club and the Center for Environmental Law and Policy (CELP) filed a 60-day notice of intent to sue EPA. Why? Because Sierra Club and CELP contend that the Clean Water Act requires a PCB TMDL (water cleanup plan) be prepared for the Spokane River. To do less, they contend, is to “side-step the law by not preparing a PCB cleanup plan, and issuing permits anyway.”
NPDES permits, which regulate discharge of pollution into a water body, were recently issued by Ecology to the City of Spokane, Kaiser, Inland Empire Paper and Liberty Lake Water and Sewer District. The permits require monitoring of PCBs over 2 to 3 years to establish a technology –based PCB limit within 5 years. These permits also include a requirement that they will participate in a Toxics Reduction Task Force. This language is also included in the draft permit that Ecology is currently accepting comments on for the proposed Spokane County wastewater treatment plant, which could open this fall. A public meeting/hearing is scheduled the evening of August 10th.
The task force and other features of the permits are part of a “straight to implementation (STI)” initiative that Ecology has proposed for toxics, including PCBs, in the Spokane River. Says Dave Moore, Ecology’s Watershed Unit Supervisor, “Because the DO TMDL took twelve years to develop, we don’t want to wait and haggle at least that long to reduce PCB sources. With the STI approach dischargers are not getting a free pass because we’re holding the TMDL option in reserve if we can’t collaboratively make the reasonable reductions needed.”
If Sierra Club/CELP does not reach an accommodation with EPA by mid-October, the issue will likely go to court. A court action in favor of Sierra Club/CELP could force development of a PCB TMDL. Such an outcome could affect millions of dollars of investment by dischargers and what cleanup actions get done when.
What the Sierra Club/CELP notice does not do is challenge the current draft permit for the County. Sierra Club/CELP has long contended that the County plant cannot receive a permit because of “the Clean Water Act’s simple requirement that one cannot put a new source of pollution (PCBs) into a river that is already exceeding pollution standards.” The County has vigorously defended itself against this claim.
If the final permit is challenged, opening the multi-million dollar Spokane County plant could be put in jeopardy in the short term and cost millions more to bring on-line in the long term. Sierra Club/CELP has made no indication whether they will challenge the permit. Stakeholders expect to find out if a challenge will occur in November, which is when the permit may be finalized by Ecology.
In a surprise move last week, Kaiser Aluminum appealed conditions of its NPDES discharge permit, partially because it did not want to be bound by outcomes of the toxics task force. Said Rick Eichstaedt, an attorney Spokane Riverkeeper, “It’s unfortunate. After negotiations and compromise by everybody on these permits, now this. As a community with diverse interests, we all stepped up together to find something that works. They’re either in this with all of us, or out on their own limb.”
Currently, Ecology is working with stakeholders to develop the toxics task force, with expectations being that it will be formed by late November. Says Andy Dunau, Executive Director of the River Forum “The current jousting is symptomatic of a very fluid situation with lots of gamesmanship. The Forum spent almost a year facilitating meetings that resulted in stakeholders agreeing on a DO TMDL that is reflected in the permits just issued. The current jousting is kind of like watching Act II, scene one. Add in elections and rising utility rates to pay for cleanup efforts, and you realize there are a lot of unknowns that still need to be resolved.”
Stay tuned.