  |
|
|
Department of Ecology News Release - July 31, 2007
07-212
BELLEVUE - The Department of Ecology (Ecology) has fined the City of Seattle $12,000 for an April overflow of sewage into Lake Washington.
The sewage overflow occurred as a result of a pump failure at pump station 7 in the Madison Park district. The overflow went undetected from April 5 to April 8 due to malfunctions of the pump station alarm and the overflow notification system. With the underground pump out of operation, wastewater entered an overflow line that discharges into Lake Washington.
Wastewater also overflowed into the lake from another nearby outfall. A combined sewage and stormwater line serves the neighborhood. Overflows from the combined system are allowed only as a result of storm events. The pump failure and resulting overflows occurred during dry weather.
An Ecology permit allows discharges from Seattle's 92 Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) outfalls only as a result of storms.
Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) crews repaired the pump station and halted the overflows within hours of discovering the problem. An estimated 294,000 gallons of untreated combined sewage flowed to the lake over a 74-hour period.
"The city responded quickly, but should have been able to detect the pump failure and the overflow when they first happened," said Kevin Fitzpatrick, regional supervisor of Ecology's water quality program. "Seattle must ensure dependable service from critical links like this pump station and its monitoring system."
A city report to Ecology explained that a system to monitor and report on dry-weather overflows was undergoing testing at the time of the incident, and this prevented a timely alert.
"Last April's sewer overflow was caused by the simultaneous failure of a number of systems, any one of which should have prevented the overflow from occurring," Seattle Public Utilities Director Chuck Clarke said. He said SPU will not appeal the fine.
"We agree with the Department of Ecology: this should not have happened; and we are taking steps to ensure it will not happen again."
Those steps, Clarke said, include upgrading the city's pump station and combined sewer overflow monitoring systems and implementing standard operating procedures for city staff that will protect against dry weather overflows and system failures.
Seattle has a dedicated program under its Ecology permit to control and reduce the number of CSO discharges each year. Ecology's water quality permit programs support the state's initiative to restore the health of Puget Sound by 2020. Water from Lake Washington flows through the Lake Washington Ship Canal to enter the Sound at Shilshole Bay in Seattle.
Ecology penalties may be appealed.
###
Media contact: Larry Altose, ecology public information, 425-649-7009
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
