City of Sandy Clean Water Settlement

SEATTLE (July 18, 2023) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Justice (DOJ), the state of Oregon, and the city of Sandy, Oregon, entered into a Clean Water Act consent decree requiring the city to complete comprehensive remedial measures and significantly limit new sewer connections or alterations until Sandy can demonstrate that capacity exists to reliably meet discharge requirements.

• Overview
• Violations
• Injunctive Relief
• Pollutant Impacts
• Health Effects and Environmental Benefits
• Civil Penalty
• State Partners
• Comment Period
• Contacts

Overview of Facilities

Sandy’s sewer system includes one wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) that serves a population of approximately 12,000 people. Built in 1965, Sandy’s WWTP was upgraded in 1998 and is regulated pursuant to a Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit and a stormwater discharge general NPDES permit. Sandy’s WWTP discharges treated effluent into Tickle Creek, a tributary of Deep Creek, leading to the Clackamas River. 

Violations

Sandy violated Section 301 of the Clean Water Act and terms and conditions of its CWA permits. Sandy’s alleged violations include:

• prohibited bypasses,
• effluent limit exceedances, and
• stormwater monitoring noncompliance.

The consent decree puts Sandy on a path to compliance with its Clean Water Act obligations, specifically with respect to its effluent discharges.

Injunctive Relief

The goal of this injunctive relief is to eliminate bypasses from Sandy’s sewer system and achieve compliance with Sandy’s Clean Water Act permits. Under the terms of the consent decree Sandy must:

• Continue its sewer assessment and rehabilitation program to reduce the amount of rain and groundwater that enters the collection system.
• Develop and implement a capacity, management, operation, and maintenance program designed to ensure the collection system provides a high level of service to customers and reduces regulatory noncompliance.
• Complete a set of preliminary design improvements to the treatment plant by October 31, 2023, to improve reliability and increase capacity.
• Submit an amended wastewater facilities plan to bring Sandy into compliance with its NPDES permit and keep the city in compliance in the future. The schedule for final completion of all work under the plan shall be as expeditious as possible, but no longer than 15 years from the date EPA and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality approve the plan.
• Implement a capacity assurance program that will limit new connections and additions to Sandy’s sewer system until the City has demonstrated that adequate capacity exists in its sewer system.
• Submit a report describing progress that meets the above requirements every six months.

Pollutant Impacts

Through the implementation of the proposed consent decree, the following estimated annual pollutant reductions will result:

• 20,776 pounds of total suspended solids;
• 5,079 pounds of biochemical oxygen demand;
• 2,214 pounds of ammonia; and
• 4 pounds of total residual chlorine.

Health Effects and Environmental Benefits

The settlement will result in a reduction of pollutants including as indicated by the following measures:

Total Suspended Solids (TSS) – TSS indicates the measure of suspended solids in wastewater, effluent or water bodies. High levels of TSS in a water body can diminish the amount of light that penetrates the water column and reduce photosynthesis and the production of oxygen.

Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) – BOD is an indirect measure of the biologically degradable material present in organic wastes. High BOD means there is an abundance of biologically degradable material that will consume oxygen from the water during the degradation process. It may take away oxygen that is needed for aquatic organisms to survive.

E. coli bacteria – E. coli is considered an indicator organism, used to identify fecal contamination in freshwater and indicate the possible presence of disease-causing bacteria and viruses (pathogens). High numbers of E. coli (and other) bacteria may contribute to cloudy water, unpleasant odors, and increased oxygen demand (which may reduce levels of dissolved oxygen in the water). E. coli concentrations may be linked with other parameters such as high total suspended solids (TSS) and turbidity concentrations because the bacteria tend to be found with particles. E. coli concentrations may also be linked with high phosphorus, nitrate, and biological oxygen demand (BOD) concentrations.

Civil Penalty

This settlement includes a civil penalty for the city’s past Clean Water Act violations. Sandy must pay a $250,000 civil penalty to the United States and a $250,000 civil penalty to Oregon. The Oregon penalty may be reduced to $50,000 if Sandy completes a supplemental environmental project worth $200,000 by December 31, 2028. Sandy must also pay Oregon $24,300 owed from a previous state enforcement action.

State Partners

The State of Oregon is a co-plaintiff in this matter.

Comment Period

The settlement, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, was subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. The Court entered the consent decree on September 11, 2023.

Contacts

For more information, contact:

Hannah C. Anderson, Attorney-Adviser
Water Enforcement Division
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW (Mail Code 2243A)
Washington, DC, 20460
(202) 564-0072
anderson.hannah@epa.gov

Heidi Rausch, Engineer
Water Enforcement Division
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW (Mail Code 2243A)
Washington, DC, 20460
(202) 564-3096
rausch.heidi@epa.gov