A ban on high-phosphorus automatic-dishwasher detergents imposed last July 1 in Spokane County triggered a consumer backlash that lingers today, but appears in early data to be having the desired effect of reducing the amount of the nettlesome nutrient likely being released into the Spokane River. The Spokane Business Journal reports.
A proposal in the Washington Legislature would relax the deadline for cleaning up the Spokane River and other state waterways, allowing wastewater dischargers up to 20 years to meet stringent new limits for phosphorus and other pollutants. The Spokesman Review reports.
The attached document contains a list of the draft modeling scenarios currently being considered by Ecology, IDEQ, the Spokane Tribe and EPA for assessment of Lake Spokane dissolved oxygen impacts.
Polluters say they need 20 years to clean up their act and regulators just might give it to them. The Inlander Reports
If Spokane County can not get a permit to send effluent from the wastewater treatment plant they are in the initial phases of building, options for sending treated effluent to wetlands, public parks and Inland Empire Paper are being explored. The Inlander reports.
Millions of Washingtonians have a new tool kit to help them keep Puget Sound, the Spokane River, the Columbia River, and other Washington waters healthy and clean. Washington Waters – Ours to Protect” is a web site packed with downloadable posters, tips and advice. The site offers tangible actions that every Washington resident can take to protect the state’s waters.
The Environmental Protection Agency said in a report Thursday that toxins remain at levels harmful to people, fish and wildlife throughout the Northwest, despite decades-long cleanups. Hot spots include the Spokane River in Washington. The Associated Press reports.
The Spokane County Commission decided in a split vote Tuesday to sign one of its biggest-ever contracts, hiring CH2M Hill Constructors Inc. to design, build and operate a new sewage treatment facility. Whether the county will receive a permit to discharge effluent into the river is still uncertain. The Spokesman Review reports.
The Cities of Hayden, Post Falls and Rathdrum along with Kootenai County developed a long-term master plan to guide wastewater service for the Rathdrum Prairie. The plan was released in November and public comment completed in December.
Spokane County needs to raise about $145 million if, as expected, they proceed with building a proposed waste water treatment plant. How to pay for it is now a question. The Spokesman Review reports.