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05/20/2008: "County Sewer Plants Receive DOE Awards"

(Town of FH Council member Liz Illg informs Council of award)

A record 78 of the state's 283 wastewater treatment plants reported perfect performances in 2007 to keep Washington's waters clean, and representatives from the Department of Ecology (Ecology) will present "Outstanding Performance Awards" to the plant operators at public events in the coming weeks.

Three of those awards will go to the Eastsound Wastewater Treatment Plant and to Orcas Village, both of which are operated by the Eastsound Water and Sewer District. Also on Orcas, the Washington Water Service Company’s Rosario Wastewater Treatment Plant is a first-time award winner, while Eastsound and Orcas Village join Friday Harbor as repeat winners.

The number of award-winning plants is up dramatically this year, according to records at the Washington. When the regulatory agency began keeping track of perfect records starting in 1995, only 14 plants were in full compliance with the requirements of their wastewater permits. In recent history, the number of perfect performers has consistently climbed from 33 in 2004 up to 48 in 2005 and to 56 in 2006.

The award winners passed every environmental test and analyzed all samples according to Ecology's requirements and had no spills into Washington's waters during 2007.


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"Effective wastewater treatment is the cornerstone to maintaining water quality across the state," said Kelly Susewind, interim manager of Ecology's water quality program. "This behind-the-scenes work grows more crucial every day as our state's population grows, putting more pressure on our waters."

Wastewater treatment plant operators face around-the-clock challenges. Their plants collect household sewage and industrial wastewater all day, every day. They treat the sewage and then discharge clean, treated water into waterways or spread the water onto land. Ecology monitors each plant's effectiveness by requiring they meet conditions of permits that limit the contaminants the plants may discharge into lakes, rivers or marine waters or onto the ground.

Plant operators must be certified by the state and follow the requirements of their state permits. They commonly conduct up to thousands of water-quality monitoring tests during the course of a year. They also must ensure that no wastewater is spilled at the plant. Ecology reviewed every treatment plant's tests, reports and on-site inspections to determine which facilities met all conditions of their permits.

Highlights this year include super-achievers Manchester with 13 consecutive years of perfection, Newport with 11 years, and Port Townsend with 10 years. In addition, 13 sewer plants are getting the honor for the first time.

On the flip side, Ecology's 13-year record also indicates that 139 of the state's plants have never achieved 100-percent compliance.