PRESS RELEASE FROM THE PRIEST RIVER CITY CLERK: On February
27, 2013, the city of Priest River released an unknown quantity of sludge from
the city's wastewater treatment plant into the Pend Oreille River.
The release was observed by the city's
wastewater operator and lasted for at least 1.5 hours before it was
stopped. Some samples were taken by the
city during the release.
The
Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) have been contacted about this potential violation of
the city's federal NPDES permit for the discharge of treated wastewater into
the Pend Oreille River.
A written report
prepared by the city will be submitted to both agencies.
The
public is not at risk from this event and the city is taking further action to
prevent this type of event from reoccurring.
