For immediate release
Clean Water Services to Intervene in Appeal Against DEQ
Hillsboro, OR — April 20, 2004 —
Clean Water Services, Washington County’s wastewater and stormwater utility district, will file a motion today to intervene in an appeal filed by parties against the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) regarding the District’s recently issued Watershed Permit.
Clean Water Services (District) recently became the first agency in the nation to be issued the federal permit that provides a model for not only how to keep a river clean, but also to look at the overall watershed health. The District cleans wastewater to some of the highest standards in the nation before releasing it to the Tualatin River. Water quality studies show the river is healthier than it has been in decades.
In the past, the DEQ issued the District separate federal permits for cleaning stormwater runoff and for each of its four wastewater treatment plants that clean wastewater and returns it to the Tualatin. The permit, which was issued on February 26th, combined all of the individual standards and requirements into one watershed-wide, national pollution discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit.
The Tualatin Riverkeepers and two individuals have filed a Notice of Intent with Oregon’s Land Use Board of Appeal (LUBA) to appeal the permitting decision by DEQ. The permit challenge was filed with the Land Use Board of Appeals. The detailed permitting process included numerous opportunities for public review and comment. Similar appeals to LUBA have been filed related to NPDES permits issued to several other Oregon municipalities.
Both the Oregon DEQ and Clean Water Services believe the watershed permit will ensure compliance with the water quality standards that have been established for the Tualatin River.
“The new permit promotes aggressive continued efforts to restore watershed health,” said Bill Gaffi, General Manager. “It also encourages efforts to better understand the complex factors affecting the watershed and therefore dedicate scarce resources where they will produce the greatest environmental benefit.”
“We think the DEQ permitting process is consistent with the requirements of the Clean Water Act and other provisions of Oregon law, and frankly are quite proud of this model watershed-based permit,” said Charles Logue, Director, Technical Services. “Based on the documents the petitioners have filed to date, we see no basis for asking the Land Use Board of Appeals to overturn the DEQ permitting decision and we want LUBA to know that we support DEQ and its permit decisions.”
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