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<title>Re: [Vision2020] Moscow Water Treatment Center</title>
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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color="#333399" face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#333399'>One update to Mark’s column in the
Daily News,<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color="#333399" face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#333399'>The editorial in the Daily News mentioned
that <st1:State w:st="on">Alaska</st1:State> and <st1:State w:st="on">Idaho</st1:State>
are the only two states that do not have discharge permitting authority; while
this is currently true <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Alaska</st1:place></st1:State>,
as of June 29, 2006, applied for primacy under the Alaska Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System program as authorized under Alaska Statues and
Code. The EPA, on August 1, 2006 determined that the stated NPDES
application was incomplete; the state, in November, began the process of
addressing the inadequacies and will submit an updated application sometime in
the next couple of months. After the EPA accepts this updated
application, the EPA has 90 days to approve the application. Alaska DEQ
fully expects to have discharge permitting authority sometime around March or
April 2007. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color="#333399" face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#333399'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color="#333399" face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#333399'> <st1:State w:st="on">Alaska</st1:State>
was not under in great rush to complete this paperwork until the EPA closed the
<st1:City w:st="on">Anchorage</st1:City> office and moved operations to <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Seattle</st1:place></st1:City>. Once
this closure had occurred, former Governor Murkowski, together with the State
legislature, decided to move forward with obtaining permitting authority.
</span></font><font color="#333399"><span style='color:#333399'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color="#333399" face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#333399'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color="#333399" face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:#333399'>After Spring 2007, <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State> will be the only state to not have
discharge permitting authority. </span></font><font color="#333399"><span
style='color:#333399'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'>Chris Storhok<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<div>
<div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>
<hr size=2 width="100%" align=center tabindex=-1>
</span></font></div>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=2 face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Tahoma;font-weight:bold'>From:</span></font></b><font size=2
face=Tahoma><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Tahoma'> <st1:PersonName
w:st="on">vision</st1:PersonName>2020-bounces@moscow.com [mailto:<st1:PersonName
w:st="on">vision</st1:PersonName>2020-bounces@moscow.com] <b><span
style='font-weight:bold'>On Behalf Of </span></b>Mark Solomon<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Sent:</span></b> Wednesday, December 06, 2006
9:46 PM<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>To:</span></b> Tim Lohrmann; <st1:PersonName
w:st="on">vision</st1:PersonName>2020@moscow.com<br>
<b><span style='font-weight:bold'>Subject:</span></b> Re: [Vision2020] <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Moscow</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Water</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Treatment</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center</st1:PlaceType></st1:place></span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'>Tim,</span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'>My column from today's paper.</span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'>Mark</span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'>*********</span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 color=black face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:black'> TOWN CRIER II: State at fault for <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Moscow</st1:place></st1:City>'s water woes</span></font></tt><font
size=2 color=black face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:
"Courier New";color:black'><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">By Mark Solomon</font></tt></span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 color=black face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:black'>Wednesday, December 6, 2006 - Page Updated
at 10:53:38 AM</span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 color=black face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:black'>In the Daily News editorial (Weekend, Dec.
2 & 3), Murf Raquet comes down on the Environmental Protection Agency's
proposed penalties for discharge violations at the Moscow sewage treatment
plant blaming the EPA - that big, bad, out-of-touch federal agency - for once
again threatening an innocent victim. Unmentioned in the editorial is what I
believe is the underlying source of the regulatory problem: the Idaho
Legislature's failure to trust its own agency, the Idaho Department of
Environmental Quality, with implementing the federal Clean Water Act in <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>.</span></font></tt><font
size=2 color=black face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:
"Courier New";color:black'><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">The Clean Water Act was written with the intention
that the states would implement the law. EPA was directed to act in an
oversight capacity providing unified guidance to the states, but first, each
state had to show it had the capability, from both a statutory framework and a
staffing point of view, to administer a technically challenging regulatory
program.</font></tt><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">Two states failed to do that. <st1:State w:st="on">Idaho</st1:State>
and <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Alaska</st1:place></st1:State>
have the dubious distinction of being the only states in the nation that do not
have their own water pollution point source permitting program. The result: all
of <st1:State w:st="on">Idaho</st1:State>'s waste water discharge permits are
written and monitored long-distance by EPA staff in <st1:City w:st="on">Seattle</st1:City>
rather than by <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>'s
Department of Environmental Quality.</font></tt><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">The National Pollution Discharge Elimination
System regulates water pollution from point source dischargers such as <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Moscow</st1:place></st1:City>'s sewage plant.
Wastewater dischargers vary both in size and pollution production. EPA, in <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>'s absence, has to
oversee wastewater operations from small trailer park sewage lagoons to huge
industrial facilities, a daunting task even if they weren't hundreds of miles
away.</font></tt><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">Every few years the howls from <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State> water pollution dischargers tired of
the seeming randomness of regulatory attention from EPA get loud enough to move
the Legislature to consider creating an Idaho NPDES program. Unfortunately, the
Legislature deems the costs of implementing such a program to be too high. The
costs come in two forms: hard cash for funding the program and serious
political exposure if the state were to take on the responsibility of
regulating major <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>
industrial polluters.</font></tt><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">As an example of how <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State> fails even when it does take on its
responsibility of monitoring pollution, let's sidestep into air pollution for a
moment. Unlike water, <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>
has been in charge of air permitting since 1978 except for the years 1980-1983.
The Clean Air Act, like the Clean Water Act, specifies state implementation
under EPA guidance. In 1980 DEQ complied and wrote the first air pollution
permit for the largest air polluter in <st1:State w:st="on">Idaho</st1:State>,
the Potlatch mill in <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Lewiston</st1:place></st1:City>.
Potlatch didn't like it, saying the cost of cleaning up their pollution was too
high despite the fact that a good acid rainstorm would have the paint peeling
off houses and cars in <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Lewiston</st1:place></st1:City>
not to mention the effects on people's health. This being <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>, Potlatch made this troublesome permit
disappear by successfully lobbying the Legislature to zero out the entire DEQ
air quality budget.</font></tt><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">Much to Potlatch's dismay, eliminating <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>'s air quality
program did not make the Clean Air Act go away. Instead, EPA wrote Potlatch's
permit, but it did not have the charge or incentive to negotiate solutions to
some of the technical issues raised that occurred when <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State> was in control. After three years of
EPA oversight, Potlatch and other big <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Idaho</st1:place></st1:State>
polluters were back at the Legislature asking for money to reinstate DEQ's air
program. Their wish was granted, but this time when the agency went back to
work there was an ominous cloud in the office: having been dismissed once, DEQ
became gun shy when it came to writing and monitoring Potlatch and other
industrial pollution permits. They tended, then and now, to fall on the
industry side of any question rather than on the side of public interest.</font></tt></span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Courier New";color:black'><br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">Back to water: Who would I prefer be writing
permits for the public interest: DEQ or EPA? That's a tough one as long as
agencies are run by appointees more responsive to political masters' and
permittees' interests than to science and public health. All things being
equal, I prefer a decision that is made locally.</font></tt><br>
<br>
<tt><font face="Courier New">There are other issues that complicate <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Moscow</st1:place></st1:City> sewer plant
discharge requirements beyond the matter of who is actually writing the permit.
But until the Idaho Legislature embraces environmental protection by
authorizing a state NPDES program, adequately funding DEQ and staying the heck
out of permitting issues for their corporate campaign contributors, EPA,
whether they deserve the post or not, is the name of the game.</font></tt></span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'>At 5:38 PM -0800 12/6/06, Tim Lohrmann wrote:</span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><font size=2 color=red face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:red;font-weight:bold'>CAUTION:</span></font></b></tt><tt><b><font
size=2 color=blue face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt;color:blue;
font-weight:bold'> NO CHRIST-CHURCH OR DOUG WILSON-RELATED CONTENT.</span></font></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><font size=2 color=blue face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;color:blue;font-weight:bold'>
REGULAR POST-ERS STRONGLY CAUTIONED!!</span></font></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-weight:bold'>What's the latest on the City of <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Moscow</st1:place></st1:City>'s water treatment
center?</span></font></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-weight:bold'>It was reported last week that it is
not in EPA compliance, and needed to be brought up to specs or that the city
was to be fined.</span></font></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-weight:bold'>I guess I haven't looked hard enough,
but I haven't seen anything else about it.</span></font></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-weight:bold'> TL</span></font></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><i><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-weight:bold;font-style:italic'>"Those
'technicalities' have a name, Bobby. They're called the Bill of Rights."</span></font></i></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><b><i><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-weight:bold;font-style:italic'>
----Hank Hill</span></font></i></b></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'> </span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>
<hr size=1 width="100%" align=center>
</span></font></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt' type=cite cite>
<p class=MsoNormal><tt><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:
10.0pt'>Cheap Talk?</span></font></tt> <a
href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/mail_us/taglines/postman8/*http:/us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=39663/*http:/voice.yahoo.com"><tt><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>Check out</span></font></tt></a><tt><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'> Yahoo! Messenger's
low PC-to-Phone call rates.</span></font></tt><o:p></o:p></p>
</blockquote>
<div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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