  |
|
|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Oct. 21, 1999
99-217
Contact: Sandy Howard, public information manager, 360-407-6239
OLYMPIA - For the second time in two months, the Weyerhaeuser Company mill at Cosmopolis has been penalized $10,000 by the state Department of Ecology (Ecology) for discharging high levels of fecal-coliform bacteria into the lower Chehalis River.
On Sept. 15, the mill's process waste water contained levels of the bacteria that were 50 percent higher than the acceptable standard allowed by the company's wastewater permit.
"Even though the fecal coliform bacteria counts were not as high as they were for last month's penalty, they were significantly above acceptable standards," said Cullen Stephenson, who manages Ecology's solid-waste program. "The mill has made progress on this problem, but we'll continue to enforce until it is fully within standards."
The previous penalty, issued to the mill in September, was for an Aug. 12 release that contained more than twice the acceptable standard of fecal coliform bacteria.
The mill self-reports its monitoring information, as required by its Ecology wastewater permit.
The presence of fecal coliform bacteria indicates that pathogens may be present that can harm to human health.
The mill extracts cellulose from wood chips to manufacture chemical pulp, which is used to make products ranging from film to toothbrush handles.
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
