Oakland Justifies Lake St. Clair Pollution

For years, local authorities have treated combined sewer overflows (CSOs) with chlorine to kill bacteria in preparation for diverting the overflow following heavy rains away from wastewater treatment plants and into natural water bodies.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been urging state and local officials to convert combined sewer systems into separate sanitary and stormwater sewer systems.

“Oakland County dumped 2 billion gallons of sewage into Macomb in August storm”“Several hours after the Aug. 11 [2014] storm, the polluted Red Run Drain in Warren was still about 20 feet above its normal level.”
http://www.macombdaily.com/article/MD/20140826/NEWS/140829703

Thereafter, pathogens, toxins and nutrients originating in household wastewater would go to a wastewater treatment plant for removal while the heavy volume of rainwater would flow separately, directly into lakes and streams. Cities like Lansing and Grand Rapids have undertaken such conversions.

 

Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Jim Nash justifies not planning for separate stormwater and sanitary sewage systems by arguing that separated stormwater runoff is not treated, so whatever pollutants it carries off streets, parking lots and roofs ends up in lakes and streams.

Presently, Nash sends combined storm and sanitary effluent from the giant Kuhn Retention Basin in Madison Heights to a wastewater treatment plant in Detroit.

If heavy rainfall threatens to overwhelm the treatment plant, Nash partially treats the combined fluids with chlorine to control pathogens such as bacteria and sends the deluge into Red Run, through Macomb County to the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair.

But the sanitary sewage component contains the nutrients like phosphorus that are found in human waste. Those nutrients generate algal blooms, some with toxic potential, that contribute to the degradation of Lake St. Clair.

In other words, Nash seems content to pass on to Lake St. Clair the pollutants in the waste of hundreds of thousands of people rather than the separated stormwater running off roofs and pavements.

Go figure.

Stormwater Summit; Contaminated Sites; Invasive Mussels

2015 Stormwater Summit

“Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Jim Nash and his office, along with Pure Oakland Water and Lawrence Technological University, are hosting the third annual Regional Stormwater Summit on October 9, 2015.”

“Elected officials, government staff, industry leaders, engineers, environmentalists, and community members interested in sustainability, green infrastructure, keeping our waters clean, cutting edge projects and related environmental concerns are encouraged to attend.”

“Attendance is limited to the first 300 registrants. Cost to attend is only $20 and includes a light breakfast, box lunch, and beverages.”

Questions? Email or call Alyssa Atkinson:   atkinsonaa@oakgov.com or call 248-858-0967.  

Remediation of Contaminated Sites

There are significant changes to regulations for remediation of contaminated sites in Michigan. DEQ's Remediation and Redevelopment Division is presenting three Environmental Remediation and Risk Management Conferences.  Attendees will hear about how changes to Part 201 and Part 213 have created opportunities for cost effective remediation solutions.

The dates and places are October 1 in Novi, October 7 in Traverse City and October 14 in Grand Rapids.

The conferences will address the new Water Strategy and the importance of cleaning up contaminated sites for future generations.

DEQ's Remediation and Redevelopment staff will give updates on RCRA/Part 111 Corrective Action, Michigan’s Role in the TSCA PCB Remediation Program, Land and Resource Use Restrictions Overview, No Further Action and Redevelopment, Brownfields - Solving Technical Issues, and more.

https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/?eventid=1751772

Invasive Mussels

The Invasive Mussel Collaborative is offering a new listserv developed to promote communication among stakeholders engaged in zebra and quagga mussel management, control, research or related efforts. This new service began September 1.

“This listserv will be a forum for sharing information about invasive mussel control, research and management.  Appropriate postings include management strategies, field study results, permitting information, policy issues, research, etc. This list will also receive information from the Invasive Mussel Collaborative (http://www.invasivemusselcollaborative.net), including webinar announcements and other relevant information.”

 https://glc-lists.merit.edu/sympa/info/invasivemussels

Open FOIA Appeal to OCWRC

In May and June of last year, I visited dozens of construction sites in a number of Oakland County communities and took photos.  Contractors at many of those sites had not applied any erosion control methods or had not maintained those that had been installed (mostly silt fence), contrary to state and federal water quality laws.  I saw dried mud leading from construction sites to the street and city sewers.

I reported what I had seen to city officials and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ).  In those communities where the erosion control enforcement agency was the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner (OCWRC), MDEQ asked OCWRC to investigate and report back.  There are indications that didn’t happen.  One of my inquiries into the matter is described below.

*****     *****     *****

Jim Nash, Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner:

This is an appeal of your FOIA coordinator’s denial of my FOIA request dated July 30, 2015, viz:

Pursuant to the Michigan Freedom of Information Act, please furnish me with electronic copies of:

1. the chicken scratch handed by OCWRC’s Don (presumably Houston) to OCWRC’s Joseph (or Joe) Gardner, referred to in Gardner’s email of July 10, 2014 to Cheryl Petroski-Wilson of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Southeast Michigan District Office, which states, “Yes I did and Don had a chicken scratch that he handed me. I told him to clean it up so I could understand it, then give it back to me. I will get you our findings when he comes in this afternoon. Sorry I forgot about it.”
2. the cleaned up version.

I think I can prove that representatives of your office have been dodging OCWRC’s responsibilities as County Enforcement Agency (CEA) under soil erosion control laws and rules, rendering those laws and rules useless, permitting soil erosion, turbidity and sedimentation of lakes and streams within various International Joint Commission (IJC) Areas of Concern (AOCs) during combined sewer overflows (CSOs).

Furthermore, in denying me access under FOIA to records in your office that will substantiate my findings and conclusions, your FOIA coordinator relies on a non-specific, undifferentiated array of possible reasons for the denial, violating the purpose, letter and spirit of the statute.  

Her denial begins, “The information you requested...either does not exist, is not maintained by this office, or is exempt from disclosure, therefore your request is denied.”

Denial of a FOIA request in such a manner is vague, obscure, arbitrary and capricious, contrary to the intent of the Act.

Therefore, I urge under the strongest terms that you (1) disaffirm the coordinator’s denial, (2) furnish me with the precise justification for the denial, and (3) upon further inquiry on your part, provide me with the records sought in my original request.

-- Jim Lang

(etc.)