Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
January 31, 2008
4. Water Quality
SEWAGE SPILL:
Report faults Navy in sewage spill; Despite improvement, region has too many overflows, water board says - San Diego Union Tribune
REGULATION:
Warren Resources charged for four oil spills in refinery - Associated Press
SEWAGE SPILL:
Report faults Navy in sewage spill; Despite improvement, region has too many overflows, water board says
By Mike Lee, staff writer
Inaction by the Navy and its contractors allowed at least 14 million gallons of sewage to gush from the San Diego Naval Base into Chollas Creek over about two years ending in November 2006.
That's the conclusion of a months-long investigation by the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board. The finding is part of a report prepared for the agency's meeting in two weeks.
“They could have prevented it if they had just followed up” on a consultant's observation about the potential for a wrong pipe connection, said Mark Alpert, a senior enforcement agent at the water board. “They blew it.”
The Navy sewage spill – one of the largest in recent county history – highlights a broader trend: The number of sewage overflows has dropped in recent years, but water-quality officials said the region still suffers from too many large overflows – a catch-all term for releases, spills, leaks and diversions.
In many cases, the water board imposes penalties to deter more pollution. But the agency can't go after the Navy because the military is immune to fines assessed for violations of the federal Clean Water Act, even though the military has been a major source of water pollution in
Based on other big sewage spills, the one from San Diego Naval Base at
It's not clear what else the water board can do given its lack of enforcement authority. In general, the agency's leaders said they may try to force the Navy to make up for the environmental damage caused by the spill.
Navy officials blame the two-year-long leak on a contractor who incorrectly connected the sewage pipe from the 1,032-bed Palmer Hall barracks to a storm-water drain. After they discovered the mistake while working on an unrelated construction project nearby, they corrected the hook-up and checked for similar problems elsewhere.
Navy spokesman Lee Saunders said in a statement that the potential for piping trouble was raised in correspondence between the prime contractor and the plumbing subcontractor. The issue was not brought to the Navy's attention until after the mix-up was found, he said.
After the problem surfaced, “The Navy . . . instituted improved standard procedures which list step-by-step requirements for connection to sewage systems,” Saunders said.
Water-quality agents said sewage agencies countywide are making progress in reducing sewage overflows. However, there were six discharges of more than 100,000 gallons, plus one of undetermined size, last year.
“Overall, the regulated community has done a good job. But there were these large spills during the dry season, and that is kind of troubling,” Alpert said this week.
The number of sewage overflows in the region dropped from 427 in 2002-03 to 214 in 2006-07. The water board's records are filed each fiscal year. Halfway through the current fiscal year, the spill count is on pace to match last year's total.
The trend for the county's largest sewage agency, the city of
However,
The water board blamed that spill on grease and other items that clogged a pipe.
“It's a constant battle for us,” said Bob Ferrier, assistant director of
The Rainbow Municipal Water District had an overflow nearly twice as big near Interstate 15 and
The county's worst spill of 2007 occurred in Buena Vista Lagoon, where about 7.3 million gallons of wastewater spilled when a pipe owned by
Regulators have proposed a $1.1 million fine, and they are negotiating a settlement with the cities. They hope the resulting penalty will encourage wastewater officials countywide to be more vigilant.
“My response to any sewering agency that is still having spills is, 'You can do better' ,” said John Robertus, executive officer for the water board. #
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080131/news_1m31sewage.html
REGULATION:
Associated Press – 1/30/08
LOS ANGELES—Warren Resources Inc. and several workers at its
The refinery was charged with eight counts, including violations of the California Department of Fish and Game code regarding discharge of petroleum into the state's water, and the state Clean Water Act.
Six employees, including the refinery's general manager and an environmental consultant, were also charged. They were scheduled to be arraigned March 11.
Prosecutors alleged the refinery released more than 4,000 barrels of oil through a crack in a storage tank last March 7.
Fish and Game agents learned about the spill two days later when they noticed two vacuum trucks leaking fresh oil outside the facility. Prosecutors said the trucks' operators were seen burying puddles of oil in the dirt road surrounding the refinery, and other employees were seen trying to clean up the oil without protective equipment.
Company officials admitted that a pump operator didn't close a valve, causing the pump to overflow for more than 90 minutes, prosecutors said.
An after-hours message left at
Los Angeles Fire Department engineers used dirt to block the storm drain to halt further run-off.
On July 14, investigators saw black liquid flowing from the facilty into a nearby storm drain, according to prosecutors.
Two other spills occurred Sept. 3 and Nov. 14, prosecutors said. #
http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_8123573?nclick_check=1
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