Water Quality Improvement Projects (TMDLs) > Spokane River Water Quality Improvement Projects > Spokane River PCBs Project

Water Quality Improvement Project
Spokane River Area:
PCBs

Introduction

The Spokane River and Lake Spokane violate the water quality standards for the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in several segments. These segments have been placed on the state Water Quality Assessments (303[d]) list of impaired water bodies.

The Spokane River contains elevated levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in surface water, sediments, fish tissue, and in effluents being discharged to the river. The Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) first documented PCB contamination in fish tissue two decades ago, and numerous investigations by Ecology and others have been conducted to evaluate the extent of the contamination.

 In 2009, the Washington State Departments of Health and Ecology issued a revised Health Advisory for Spokane River Fish Consumption. Please see the health advisory for more information on preferred fish to be eaten, proper amounts, and proper preparation methods. In addition, please refer to the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife fishing regulations along the river. Certain segments of the river are designated catch and release only.

The Spokane Tribe of Indians have water quality standards for PCBs in the Spokane River below Lake Spokane (also known as the Spokane Arm of Lake Roosevelt) that are more than 95% lower than Federal standards, based on a higher fish consumption rate.

Why this matters

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) can be toxic to fish and wildlife that use a contaminated water body. In the past, PCBs were used as coolants and lubricants in electrical equipment such as transformers and capacitors. The United States banned the manufacture of PCBs in 1977 because they build up in the environment and can be harmful to humans and wildlife. PCB exposure can occur if you:

• Eat food, including fish, meat, and dairy products that is contaminated by PCBs.
• Drink PCB-contaminated water.
• Breathe air near hazardous waste sites that contain PCBs.

Status of the project

Ecology completed a PCB Source Assessment Study in May 2011. This document, originally published as a draft PCB TMDL, provides the technical underpinnings for a PCB reduction strategy. Rather than develop a TMDL for PCBs, Ecology will pursue more direct actions to lower PCB loading into the Spokane River. Ecology feels resources can be better spent with this direct approach, rather than establishing a TMDL with wasteload allocations that can take many generations to meet and may take a decade or more to establish, based on experiences with the dissolved oxygen TMDL. This direct-to-implementation strategy, a component in the overall Toxics Reduction Strategy for the Spokane River, will in part require establishing performance-based PCB limits on wastewater treatment plants, and require the establishment of a regional Toxics Reduction Task Force to identify and reduce PCBs at their source in the watershed.

NPDES Permits were issued for all Washington wastewater dischargers, including the new Spokane County wastewater treatment facility, in the summer and fall of 2011. These permits require that performance-based PCB limits be established within the first permit cycle and require participation in the regional task force. Ecology has been working with the dischargers and other stakeholders to establish this Task Force be early 2012.

If Ecology determines that the Task Force is failing to make measurable progress toward meeting applicable water quality criteria for PCBs, Ecology would be obligated to proceed with the development of a TMDL in the Spokane River for PCBs, or determine an alternative to ensure water quality standards are met.

Please check this web page for opportunities to learn more and get involved.

Technical information

Note: unless otherwise specified, the following documents are Ecology publications.

Spokane River PCB Source Assessment, 2003-2007
www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/1103013.html

PCBs, PBDEs, and Selected Metals in Spokane River Fish, 2005
www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/0603025.html

Spokane River PCB TMDL Stormwater Loading Analysis: Final Technical Report (EPA-commissioned report)
www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/0703055.html

Quality Assurance Project Plan: Total Maximum Daily Load Study for PCBs in the Spokane River
www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/0303107.html

Spokane Tribe of Indians Water Quality Standards (Spokane Tribe of Indians publication)
www.spokanetribe.com/upload/FCKeditor/Final%20Revised%20Water%20Quality%20Standards.pdf 

Related information

Spokane River Toxics Reduction Strategy
www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/1110038.html

Dissolved Metals TMDL Report
www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/9949.html

Toxic Cleanup Program's Site Information for the Spokane River
www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/tcp/sites/spo_riv/spo_riv.htm
Includes cleanup efforts associated with PCB-contaminated sediments.

Washington Department of Health Publications:

• Spokane River Fish Advisory Fact Sheet
  • en Español
• Report - Evaluation of PCBs, PBDEs, and Selected Metals in the Spokane River, Health Consultation

WRIA 57: Middle Spokane Watershed Information (Environmental Assessment Program web site)
www.ecy.wa.gov/apps/watersheds/wriapages/57.html

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