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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Dec. 21, 1998
98-217
Contact: Joye Redfield-Wilder, public information manager, (509) 575-2610
YAKIMA -- A penalty for $1,500 has been assessed to Chelan County Public Utility District No. 1 for a 700-gallon oil spill from the PUD's Rocky Reach Dam last month.
The Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) has fined the utility district for allowing turbine oil to discharge from the dam facility into the Columbia River.
The spill, reported Nov. 5, 1998, originated from an oil/water separator at the dam when a valve was left open by operators, said Jeff Lewis, with Ecology's Spills Prevention, Preparedness and Response Program.
"With better attention to detail this spill would have been prevented," Lewis said. "The PUD has voluntarily agreed to change some of its procedures to assure a similar spill does not occur again."
In addition to the fine, the PUD is responsible for any damage to the environment as a result of the spill.
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
