COMMISSIONER RANDY LEONARD'S BLOG

Portland Water Bureau Obtains Water Treatment Variance

March 14, 2012

Portland, OR – The Oregon Health Authority Drinking Water Program (OHA) today issued a final order granting the Portland Water Bureau’s request for a variance to the treatment requirements of the federal Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2). The variance – the first of its kind ever granted under the Safe Drinking Water Act – allows Portland to avoid constructing a treatment facility to address the microorganism Cryptosporidium for the City’s Bull Run source and saves Portland ratepayers roughly $70 million in capital expenses.

“We are incredibly pleased and proud to be the first water system ever to achieve this type of variance,” said Randy Leonard, Commissioner-in-Charge of the Portland Water Bureau. “This marks a truly historic milestone in the long, rich history of Portland’s drinking water system.”

“It’s been four years in the making and our staff has worked very hard to develop a scientifically sound basis to support the City’s request,” added Water Bureau Administrator, David Shaff. “The decision by OHA validates the exceptional quality of the Bull Run source and the source water protection efforts of Portland and its federal land management partners.”

The final order issued by OHA indicates that the variance will go into effect on April 1, 2012 and will be in effect for 10 years if Portland is able to continue to meet a list of conditions described by OHA in the document.

The conditions include:

• Extensive ongoing monitoring for Cryptosporidium in the Bull Run source while demonstrating an exceptionally low concentration of the contaminant;
• Maintaining all existing watershed protection policies and practices; and
• Regular reporting to OHA regarding monitoring results and the status of the watershed.

The final order also includes new requirements for tributary monitoring in the watershed and wildlife scat collection. Public notification requirements are also more stringent and include notifications to the media in the event of any detections of Cryptosporidium at the water system intake.  

Portland intends to develop monitoring programs to meet these required conditions while also developing additional research to help maintain the variance and protect public health. These additional efforts include wildlife research to better understand the only potentially significant source of Cryptosporidium in the watershed. Portland will also explore developing partnerships with local health agencies to monitor the Portland drinking water service area for cryptospordiosis, the sickness caused by Cryptosporidium.

The final order granting the variance and additional background on Portland’s LT2 compliance efforts can be accessed online at www.portlandonline.com/water/lt2.

###

                                                                                                                                                            

Click here to read the release from the Oregon Health Authority's Public Health Division announcing the decision.

Click here to read the full text of the Final Order to grant a variance.

March 14, 2012

 

Media Advisory

 

For Immediate Release

 

Contact:          Terry Black (503) 823-8064

 

Portland Water Bureau Obtains Water Treatment Variance

 

Portland, OR – The Oregon Health Authority Drinking Water Program (OHA) today issued a final order granting the Portland Water Bureau’s request for a variance to the treatment requirements of the federal Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2). The variance – the first of its kind ever granted under the Safe Drinking Water Act – allows Portland to avoid constructing a treatment facility to address the microorganism Cryptosporidium for the City’s Bull Run source and saves Portland ratepayers roughly $70 million in capital expenses.    

 

“We are incredibly pleased and proud to be the first water system ever to achieve this type of variance,” said Randy Leonard, Commissioner-in-Charge of the Portland Water Bureau. “This marks a truly historic milestone in the long, rich history of Portland’s drinking water system.”

 

“It’s been four years in the making and our staff has worked very hard to develop a scientifically sound basis to support the City’s request,” added Water Bureau Administrator, David Shaff. “The decision by OHA validates the exceptional quality of the Bull Run source and the source water protection efforts of Portland and its federal land management partners.”

 

The final order issued by OHA indicates that the variance will go into effect on April 1, 2012 and will be in effect for 10 years if Portland is able to continue to meet a list of conditions described by OHA in the document.

 

The conditions include:

 

• Extensive ongoing monitoring for Cryptosporidium in the Bull Run source while demonstrating an exceptionally low concentration of the contaminant;
• Maintaining all existing watershed protection policies and practices; and
• Regular reporting to OHA regarding monitoring results and the status of the watershed.

 

The final order also includes new requirements for tributary monitoring in the watershed and wildlife scat collection. Public notification requirements are also more stringent and include notifications to the media in the event of any detections of Cryptosporidium at the water system intake.  

 

Portland intends to develop monitoring programs to meet these required conditions while also developing additional research to help maintain the variance and protect public health. These additional efforts include wildlife research to better understand the only potentially significant source of Cryptosporidium in the watershed. Portland will also explore developing partnerships with local health agencies to monitor the Portland drinking water service area for cryptospordiosis, the sickness caused by Cryptosporidium.

 

The final order granting the variance and additional background on Portland’s LT2 compliance efforts can be accessed online at www.portlandonline.com/water/lt2.

 

###

Bull Run water sampling produces rare result

Yesterday, the Portland Water Bureau (PWB) received preliminary laboratory results indicating the presence of Cryptosporidium in water samples from the Bull Run source collected on December 30, 2011. The lab results show that one Cryptosporidium oocyst was present in a sample collected at the raw water intake. A second oocyst was present in a sample collected from a location further upstream. Follow-up lab results received today from samples taken at the raw water intake on January 1^st, 2012 and January 3^rd, 2012 showed no further evidence of Cryptosporidium.

PWB has informed (see letter) the the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and the Multnomah County Health Department of the preliminary lab results and neither agency has indicated a concern regarding any public health effects. No special precautions are necessary for Portland’s drinking water customers.

In the midst of a high volume sampling program, it is not unexpected that a small number of Cryptosporidium organisms would occasionally be found in untreated surface water. Wildlife is present in the watershed and can be a source of Cryptosporidium. Detections of Cryptosporidium in water from the Bull Run, however, are rare.

Today’s results are the first to indicate the presence of Cryptosporidium at the Bull Run raw water intake since 2002. Since the last detection of Cryptosporidium, PWB has collected over 725 samples totaling over 19,269 liters without finding it. PWB is now conducting increased monitoring at the raw water intake according to the terms identified in the Interim Sampling Plan which has been in effect since December 2010.     

PWB is arranging for additional analysis of the positive sample including DNA testing which may provide genotype information which could help PWB better understand and characterize the significance of this detection and indicate the possible animal source.

PWB will continue to implement the interim monitoring plan as it awaits a final decision from OHA regarding a potential variance to the treatment requirements of the federal Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2). OHA has indicated that it intends to issue a final decision on the variance by the end of this month. Based on the comprehensive information and monitoring data compiled and transmitted by PWB in its variance request, we do not believe these isolated detections which have prompted no public health concerns affect the City’s underlying case for a variance.

PWB will continue to closely track and report Bull Run water quality monitoring results as we seek to understand and provide additional information about this rare, but not extraordinary event.

 

David G. Shaff, Administrator, Portland Water Bureau

 

Portland to Request an Extension on its Reservoir Replacement Schedule

PORTLAND OR—The Portland Water Bureau received a response yesterday from the Oregon Health Authority Drinking Water Program (OHA) to its request for an indefinite suspension in Portland’s uncovered drinking water reservoir compliance schedule during EPA’s review of the federal LT2 rule.

OHA responded that while EPA’s undertaking of a review of the LT2 rule is not a basis for an extension, EPA has provided guidance on what facts may warrant compliance schedule adjustments.

“EPA still hasn’t indicated why New York City is being treated differently than Portland regarding uncovered reservoirs,” said David Shaff, Water Bureau Administrator, referring to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson’s statement earlier this year that New York City may be eligible for alternative compliance options. “However, we do see that EPA has provided some direction on how a compliance schedule can be amended which will now be the focus of our attention and efforts.”

Per EPA’s new guidance, the City of Portland therefore will request an extension for its reservoir replacement schedule from OHA.

###

Click here to read the OHA's letter.

Click here to read the Portland Water Bureau's request for an indefinite suspension of Portland's reservoir replacement schedule.

State Signals Intent to Grant Portland LT2 Treatment Variance

PORTLAND OR—The Portland Water Bureau received notification from the Oregon Health Authority Drinking Water Program (OHA) that it intends to approve the city’s request for a variance to the treatment requirements of the Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2). The decision by OHA, pending public review, means the bureau will be able to avoid building an ultraviolet water treatment facility to comply with the rule, saving roughly $55 million in capital costs and approximately 4% in planned rate increases over the next three years.

“This is fantastic news and is testament to the quality of Portland’s water source and its drinking water utility,” said Water Bureau Administrator David G. Shaff. “Our detailed analysis demonstrated that the nature of the Bull Run source made additional treatment for Cryptosporidium unnecessary to protect public health.”

The Portland Water Bureau will be the first drinking water utility ever to receive a variance of this kind. The variance is a provision of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act that allows a utility to comply with drinking water regulations through alternative means.  “I am extremely proud of the monumental effort given by the men and women of the Portland Water Bureau to achieve this variance,” said Commissioner Randy Leonard, “Their expertise, commitment and perseverance has yielded an important success for Portlanders.”

In granting the variance request, OHA will require conditions for compliance which have not yet been analyzed by the city in detail, but which will include maintaining Portland’s existing watershed control and stewardship of the Bull Run and ongoing monitoring of the Bull Run water source for the pathogen Cryptosporidium. The federal Environmental Protection Agency will also have an opportunity to include conditions to Portland’s variance.  

Extensive testing of the Bull Run source over the last two years has yielded zero detections of Cryptosporidium. The pathogen has not been detected in the source in over a decade.

OHA will be conducting a public hearing is scheduled from 5-7 p.m. Dec. 14 in the Portland State Office Building, 800 N.E. Oregon St., Room 1B, to gather comments about the intent to grant the variance and its conditions.

The public comment period will close at 5 p.m. Jan. 3, 2012. After reviewing the comments a final order will be issued effective Jan. 31, 2012.

###

__________________________________________________________________________________

Click here to read the release from Oregon Public Health announcing the decision.

Click here to read the complete "Intent to Grant Variance" document from the State of Oregon.

Portland's federal delegation backs City effort to avoid LT2 costs

In August, the EPA announced that they would be reviewing the reservoir component of the Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2) for New York and its Hillview Reservoir.  The rule requires that all surface drinking water systems like Portland build expensive facilities to treat their water for Cryptosporidium, and eliminate or treat any open storage that exists in the system, such as the reservoirs at Mt. Tabor and Washington Park.

In response to the EPA's change in course for New York, Portland quickly submitted correspondence requesting an indefinite suspension of Portland's open reservoir compliance schedule while the EPA considers the rule.  If the EPA identifies alternative compliance options under the rule, Portland could avoid up to $145 million or more in associated compliance costs.

As reported by the Oregonian, Senators Merkley and Wyden, along with Representatives Blumenauer, DeFazio, and Schrader continued their strong efforts on behalf of Portland's ratepayers by submitting a joint letter supporting Portland's efforts to gain relief and flexibility from these requirements.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To read the letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson from Portland's federal delegation, click here.

To read correspondence documenting Portland's efforts seeking relief from the open reservoir requirements of the rule, click here.

For complete information on Portland's LT2 compliance efforts, click here.

City Council requests help from Senator Merkley on LT2

In light of the EPA's recent declaration that they will be reviewing the LT2 rule, the City Council sent a letter to Senator Jeff Merkley expressing the entire City Council's interest in pursuing relief from the reservoir-covering requirement of LT2.

For more information, including the EPA's announcement of their review, along with correspondence on this issue from Commissioner Leonard to our federal delegation and Water Bureau Administrator David Shaff's letter to the State of Oregon, click here.

New York's LT2 relief should be good news for Portland

In response to a letter from the EPA to Senator Charles Schumer of New York stating that the EPA would be reviewing the need for New York to spend $1.6 billion to cover its Hillview Reservoir, Commissioner Leonard wrote Senator Merkley, Senator Wyden, Congressman Blumenauer, and Congressman Schrader a letter requesting their continued assistance with the City's efforts to avoid the substantial ratepayer costs of covering or replacing Portland's open reservoirs.    

UPDATE 08.23.11

Based on the EPA's recent announcement that they would be reviewing the LT2 rule as it pertains to open finished drinking water storage, David Shaff, Administrator of the Portland Water Bureau, submitted a letter to the Oregon Health Authority Drinking Water Program.  In the letter, Administrator Shaff requests that the State indefinitely suspend enforcement of the City's approved LT2 compliance schedule for the City's open reservoirs until the EPA completes its review to enable the City to consider other methods of compliance that may result from the EPA review of the rule.

See Oregonian coverage here.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Click here to read the EPA's letter to New York Senator Charles Schumer announcing the review of the LT2 rule. -- 08.19.11

Click here to read Commissioner Leonard's letter to Portland's federal delegation requesting assistance in pursuing the alternative compliance methods being considered for New York. -- 08.22.11

Click here for Water Bureau Administrator David Shaff's letter requesting a suspension of the City's LT2 compliance schedule for open reservoirs. -- 08.23.11

Click here for a letter from the entire Portland City Council requesting the assistance of Senator Jeff Merkley in pursuing relief from the reservoir requirements of LT2. -- 09.13.11

Click here for a letter from Senators Merkley and Wyden, and Representatives Blumenauer, DeFazio, and Schrader requesting relief and flexibility from the reservoir requirements of LT2.  -- 10.24.11

Water Bureau Submits Bull Run Treatment Variance Request

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Scott Bradway, Portland Water Bureau  (503) 823-1951

PORTLAND, OR — The Portland Water Bureau today submitted a detailed request for a treatment variance to the federal and state requirements of the Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2).  The request, submitted to the Oregon Health Authority Drinking Water Program, provides substantial data and analysis in support of the assertion that treatment to address the parasite Cryptosporidium in Portland’s drinking water is unnecessary due to the nature of the City’s Bull Run source. If the variance is granted, Portland will be able to avoid the costs of building a water treatment facility to comply with the LT2 rule.

“No Cryptosporidium was detected during an intensive water sampling program totaling thousands of liters of water making up hundreds of samples,” said Water Bureau Administrator David Shaff. “The Water Bureau has clearly demonstrated that the Bull Run water source is of such high quality that no treatment for Cryptosporidium is necessary to protect public health” 

The LT2 rule focuses on reducing the risks of Cryptosporidium, a chlorine-resistant protozoan parasite that has been found in surface waters worldwide. Cryptosporidium contamination can come from any source of fecal matter including domestic animals, wastewater treatment plant discharges, and wild animals; however, sources from people and cattle pose the highest risk of infecting humans.

Portland’s request shows that the circumstances of the Bull Run watershed—with its stringent federal and local protections, a natural environment that limits contamination, an absence of the typical highest risk Cryptosporidium sources, and low Cryptosporidium occurrence in wildlife—significantly limit the risk of Cryptosporidium exposure from the water source.

Portland Water Bureau staff, working with several international experts from multiple disciplines, developed the variance request over the last five months following a year–long intensive water monitoring program for the Bull Run that detected zero instances of Cryptosporidium. The monitoring results serve as the central basis for Portland’s variance request and substantiate the effectiveness of the Bull Run watershed in limiting Cryptosporidium from entering the drinking water source.

The technical information submitted with the request provides the details of the testing program, including the locations and timing of testing, and describes additional field work and analysis that characterize the conditions in the Bull Run watershed that account for the consistent non-detection of Cryptosporidium in Bull Run water.

The request also presents public health data about infection from Cryptosporidium in the Portland Water Bureau service area and the lack of any documented transmission of the pathogen through drinking water. This data, along with details of the protected nature of the Bull Run source led to important conclusions from a panel of national public health experts. The panel found that the data collection conducted by the Portland Water Bureau had been extremely thorough and adding treatment for the Bull Run would not likely result in measurable improvement to public heath.

If the State Drinking Water Program grants a variance, federal and state regulations require ongoing monitoring. The Water Bureau has proposed a monitoring program as part of its request based on the input of a panel of utility, regulatory and microbiology experts, as well as input from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Implementation of a monitoring program such as the one proposed by the Water Bureau will provide an ongoing assessment of Cryptosporidium in the Bull Run and a means for state regulators to evaluate the ongoing basis for a variance. 

Portland anticipates a decision on its request from the State Drinking Water Program by the end of the calendar year. If its variance request is not approved, the Water Bureau will proceed with construction of an ultraviolet water treatment plant to address Cryptosporidium. The LT2 rule requires such facilities to be complete and in operation by April 1, 2014.

To access the variance request document, please visit the Water Bureau website at www.portlandonline.com/water/LT2VarianceRequest. 

#       #       #

 

Defying federal law is not an option for Portland's Water Bureau

                                      
Published: Monday, April 25, 2011, 8:00 AM     Updated: Tuesday, April 26, 2011, 3:06 PM

By Guest Columnist The Oregonian

 By David Shaff

As Kent Craford and Kelly Campbell suggest in their recent commentary, the Portland Water Bureau delivers some of the world's purest drinking water ("The Water Bureau needs to hit the pause button," April 20). We share their view that the Bull Run's natural filtration system is more than adequate, and we're pleased that a year's worth of recent tests for cryptosporidium demonstrated that the parasite is not a threat to our water supply. Although we share plenty of common ground on the quality of our water and the view that the federal government's requirement to treat our water for cryptosporidium and cover our reservoirs should not apply to Portland, we cannot simply decline to comply with a federal law, as Craford and Campbell suggest. To do so would be illegal and irresponsible and would result in even greater costs to ratepayers in the form of fines from the federal government.

The Water Bureau is the agency responsible for ensuring that the water it delivers to more than 800,000 people in the Portland metro area is safe and in compliance with federal and state drinking water standards. Negative test results for cryptosporidium do not give us the power or authority to exempt ourselves from federal law. Only the federal government has that authority, and for seven years we have pursued every avenue available to avoid the requirements of that law.

We're not pursuing an extended-compliance timeframe for resolving the open reservoir requirements of the law because it is not an option. I cannot be clearer on this point. Asking for more time is not an option for Portland, as we have no legal or technical basis on which to ask for an extension. When Congress directed the Environmental Protection Agency to develop a rule to deal with the threat of cryptosporidium, it expressly forbade the EPA from taking cost into consideration in mandating compliance.

But what about New York City, ask Craford and Campbell? New York City has one large uncovered drinking water reservoir, which the state of New York directed the city to cover by 2016 through an administrative order. Earlier this year, New York City formally requested a deferral of the deadline requirement for it to cover the reservoir, which would extend the compliance deadline to 2026, if it is granted. The city is requesting this extension because the nature of its system is such that covering the reservoir before completing other associated work in the system could potentially jeopardize public health. Portland, thankfully, does not have that problem. New York City's request has not been granted yet. To be clear, it is not requesting a variance to the open-reservoir requirements of federal law, and the time extension it is requesting is based on a threat to public health, not the cost of implementation.

Craford and Campbell also claim that because Rochester, New York's estimated cost of compliance is $25 million, Portland could find less expensive compliance strategies. Their analysis is misleading, first because Rochester serves only one-fourth as many people as Portland, and also because they choose to ignore vast differences between Portland's water system and Rochester's. Rochester's compliance strategy would be logistically very challenging to implement in Portland, and our costs would be considerably higher.

The passion that Portlanders feel for their water system is one of the great strengths of our city, and I appreciate the drive that Portlanders like Craford and Campbell have to protect one of our greatest assets. I share their passion to preserve our pristine water system. But I cannot responsibly agree with their suggestion that Portland defy federal law and subject ratepayers to severe fines on top of the already burdensome costs of compliance.

David Shaff is administrator of the Portland Water Bureau.

© 2011 OregonLive.com. All rights reserved.

Welcome to the Water House!

Portland Water House Project -- 1616 NE 140^th Avenue (just north of Halsey) 

The Portland Water Bureau constructed the "Water House" on a surplus parcel of property located in outer Northeast Portland.  The Water House Project showcases water efficient construction methods and technologies, as well as energy efficiency developed with the assistance of innovative green building partnerships with a number of local and national firms.

The Water House is Earth Advantage Platinum and ENERGY STAR certified, and is the first residential house in Oregon certified by the Environmental Protection Agency as a "WaterSense" home!  The home will serve as a demonstration model to Portland homeowners and builders, showcasing sustainable construction techniques, innovative products, and water conservation technologies.  

The Water House will be open to the public, and has a number of open houses planned over the next several months.  In our first open house, the Water Bureau hosted hundreds of interested Portlanders who toured the home.  The schedule is still being developed, but check back on the Water Bureau's website for dates and times.

To view an article on the Water House by Commissioner Leonard that appeared in The Oregonian, click here.