A Central Washington wastewater plant has released pollution for years, according to environmental advocates. A court settlement should help Quincy’s Industrial Wastewater Treatment plant clean up.
“This facility receives processed wastewater from industrial agricultural users, things like potato and vegetable processors,” said Teryn Yazdani, a staff attorney for Columbia Riverkeeper.
The plant had released pollution, including ammonia, fecal coliform and dissolved oxygen, for at least the last five years, according to court documents from Columbia Riverkeeper. The water system eventually flows into the Potholes Reservoir and Columbia River.
“They were violating limitations for almost every pollutant listed in their permit,” Yazdani said.
Columbia Riverkeeper sued the city in 2024 over the plant’s pollution discharges. According to court documents, the city also hadn’t stayed up-to-date with its record keeping or reported incidents to the state Department of Ecology.
Documents also showed the department hadn’t issued fines or violations to Quincy.
“I think that just really reinforces the importance of the Clean Water Act,” Yazdani said. “ The citizen suit provision allows organizations like Columbia Riverkeeper to fill gaps (of) state and federal regulators.”
The city of Quincy did not admit fault to any of Columbia Riverkeepers claims. A city spokesperson didn’t respond to requests for comment by deadline.
The settlement will require the treatment plant to upgrade its system, including installing a permanent cooling system; repairing its aeration system; and repairing or replacing its sludge removal system on its anaerobic digester.
The funding for each project will come from the plant’s industrial users, according to court documents. If the city can’t find the funding, it could have to stop discharging wastewater from the plant.
The settlement will provide $400,000 to the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation for water quality projects. The tribe says the funds will help improve salmon, steelhead and lamprey habitat in the Yakima River.
The tribe plans to plant native trees and shrubs, including cottonwoods and willows, said Tom Elliott, Yakama Nation fisheries project manager.
“The restored riparian forest will help improve water quality by trapping sediment and providing shade to the river and side channels,” Elliott said in a statement.
Repairing this habitat is part of a decades-long program to improve salmon, steelhead and lamprey numbers in the Yakima River Basin, he said.
