Ecology releases draft NPDES permits for Spokane River
Draft Permits
Draft Permit
Draft Fact Sheet
Public Notice
Kaiser Aluminum
Draft Permit
Draft Fact Sheet
Public Notice
Liberty Lake Water and Sewer District
Draft Permit
Draft Fact Sheet
Public Notice
Spokane (City of) Riverside Park Water Reclamation Facility
Draft Permit
Draft Fact Sheet
Public Notice
Washington Department of Ecology News Release
SPOKANE – Updated permits that will improve and protect the water quality of the Spokane River are available for public review before the final permits are issued to the two industries and two municipalities that discharge waste water into the river in Washington.
The permits, called National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits, will go to the city of Spokane’s Riverside Park Water Reclamation Facility, Inland Empire Paper, Kaiser Aluminum, and Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District.
The permits set limits on the amount of pollutants that can be discharged to the river. In Washington, the Department of Ecology (Ecology) issues the permits, whereas in Idaho, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issues the permits.
The current permits were extended while Ecology worked with the dischargers to complete the Spokane River and Lake Spokane Dissolved Oxygen Water Quality Improvement Report, also called a Total Maximum Daily Load report or TMDL. The EPA approved the report on May 20, 2010.
“The permits are where the water quality improvement report is expressed in real numbers. The new permits will make a huge difference in the quality of the water in the river and in Lake Spokane,” said Jim Bellatty who manages Ecology’s Water Quality Program in Spokane.
A public workshop will be held at 6 p.m. and a formal public hearing will begin at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2010 at the Spokane Regional Health District auditorium, 1101 W. College Avenue. The purpose of the public hearing is for Ecology to accept formal testimony on the draft permits.
The permits are available for review at the Department of Ecology’s Spokane Office, 4601 N. Monroe St., Spokane, Wash., 99205. Please call 509-329-4004 for an appointment. They also are available on Ecology’s website.
The deadline for submitting comments is 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010. Submit comments to the Permit Coordinator at stra461@ecy.wa.gov or by mail at 4601 N. Monroe St., Spokane, WA 99205.
The water quality improvement plan and the NPDES permits are designed to increase the amount of dissolved oxygen in the river and Lake Spokane so that fish have enough oxygen to live. The permits will establish new limits for the three pollutants affecting dissolved oxygen: ammonia, total phosphorus, and a group of pollutants called “carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand.”
Phosphorus is the nutrient that has the greatest effect on dissolved oxygen levels in this system. It acts like a fertilizer, boosting the excess growth of algae and other aquatic plants. This plant growth reduces the oxygen in the water to dangerous levels, making it difficult for fish and other aquatic species to survive.
Algae blooms can be dangerous, and they can make it more difficult for people to use the lake. Outbreaks of toxic blue-green algae have been occurring since the 1970s. A significant outbreak has been occurring in Lake Spokane for the past two to three weeks, especially near Suncrest.
The low amount of dissolved oxygen in the Spokane River and Lake Spokane resulted in many violations of water quality standards over the years. Many segments of the river and lake show up year after year on the federal list of impaired bodies of water. The Spokane River downstream of Long Lake Dam also fails to meet the water quality standards for dissolved oxygen set by the Spokane Tribe of Indians.
The limits imposed in these water quality permits require reducing the load of total phosphorus by more than 90 percent from all the dischargers during the critical period of March 1 – October 31. In order to meet their permit limits, dischargers will install advanced wastewater treatment technologies and may take other actions.
Some wastewater treatment plants may need to include in their strategy reducing nutrient pollution from other types of sources, conserving water and reusing wastewater.
Seven wastewater treatment plants discharge to the main stem of the Spokane River between Lake Coeur d’Alene and Lake Spokane. They currently discharge a summer average of approximately 75 million gallons of treated wastewater per day.
Dischargers in Idaho include the Post Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant, Hayden Area Regional Sewer Board, and the city of Coeur d’Alene Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant. In Idaho permits are issued by EPA. The EPA will soon be seeking public comment on permits for the Idaho dischargers.