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Sewage problems overflow in Siskiyou County
What do you do with 1.5 million gallons of raw sewage no one wants?
If you’re Siskiyou County, you leave it in an unlined, unpermitted pit outside Montague, and hope the world forgets about it.
California’s North Coast Regional Water Board hasn’t quite forgotten about it, and suggested in 2008 that the County close the pit - where residents haul septic waste from full tanks - or face “a huge liability” if groundwater is shown to be contaminated. The County directed staff to come up with a plan to move the “septage,” which is the technical term for partially treated waste from septic ponds and port-o-potties.
Problem is, sewage treatment facilities in Yreka, Weed, and Lake Shastina are already maxed out, and Siskiyou County staff has yet to address this problem, look for an alternative, file a waste discharge report, or monitor groundwater for contamination. In July 2009, Siskiyou County revisited the idea of cleaning up the pond at a Supervisor's meeting, but still made no plan of action.
Meanwhile, in the 26 years the pit has been operational, no one has left any record of monitoring for ground or surface water contamination from the pit. Is it dirtying well water with E. coli? Is it contaminating groundwater with nutrient pollution? No one knows.
Klamath Riverkeeper, who is not in the business of forgetting about water pollution, reviewed public records on the septage pond this spring and sent a letter warning legal action against Siskiyou County for disregarding California's Porter Cologne Act. If Siskiyou County continues to ignore the pond, we'll take further legal action to protect clean water in the Shasta basin and Siskiyou County.
View a photo gallery of Siskiyou County's illegal septage pond
Press Release 10/14/09 - KRK Takes Action on Siskiyou Co's Illegal Septage Pond
Read KRK's letter to Siskiyou County - October, 2009