Plant Supervisor Rick Mumpower said employees noticed a white, milky solution when they reported to work July 21 at the Ivy Street Pump station only a few blocks from the plant. Two hours later, a thick foam formed on top of the water in the large round treatment containers. Solids that normally rest at the bottom of other containers were surfacing, bypassing treatment and flowing out of the plant into the river.

The City notified the Oregon Emergency Response System, which notified the Department of Agriculture, which ordered the city to issue a shellfish warning. The warning was lifted on Friday, Lanfear said. The system had returned to normal operation by 3:30 p.m. Lanfear said the alkali could have come in the form of soda ash, caustic soda orsome type of solution like paint thinner. The best guess is that it was dumped into a manhole.

Mumpower said the city fire department researched city files to find a local business that might have large volumes of alkali material, but found none. He said a truck passing through town may have dumped the material into the sewer tolighten its load. Because it moved with the water, Lanfear said it was impossible to track where it was dumped from or who may have dumped the material. Source: The World Newspaper, July 30, 1998, by Paul Noel.

Also see: Florence Sewage Spills

7/22/98 - Florence Sewage Plant Fails Because of Chemical - An illegal dumping Tuesday (7/21) of an unknown chemical caused a partial failure of the Florence sewage treatment plant.

About 600 gallons per minute of partially treated sewage started bypassing the treatment plant at 9 a.m., going straight into the Siuslaw estuary, said Rick Mumpower, Florence water and waste water plant supervisor. The bypassing sewage caused health officials toclose the Siuslaw estuary to shellfish harvest.

Mumpower estimated that at least 1,000 gallons of chemical entered the system. He does not know what chemical caused the upset or where it went into sewer lines. "It was definitely a criminal act," Mumpower said. The same thing happened about three years ago, he said.

Mumpower could not estimate how long the system will need to return to normal. If too much of the bacteria die, Florence will have to go to another city sewage system to get bacteria to restart its culture, he said.
Source: Oregonian Newspaper, July 22, 1998.

Angry with what many called poor communication to the community about a serious health problem, the residents also demanded to know details of the spill, what action government officials took after it occurred and whether their children are safe.

Karen Wilson, director of the Williamson County and Cities Health District, said her office has caught up on themore than 400 reports of illnesses.

Hartley Sappington, the interim general manager of the MUD (municipal utility district) resigned last week, but officals said he had decided to do that before the spill. Board President Sam Giaimo died Friday morning of cancer. Meanwhile, with the first day of school just a week away, Matt Matthys, principal of the Great Oaks Elementary School, said teachers would be told to enforce strict sanitary measures to prevent the spread of secondary infections among children.

Dan Arguijo, spokesman for Austin's Water and Wastewater Utility, said five more private wells were found to be contaminated, bringing the total number of tainted wells to 29. Excerpts from Article in Austin American-Statesman Newspaper, by Christian Davenport. 

Other county documents seem to indicate that the Hwy. 126 development will rely on a (1964? or 1956?) septic system for waste disposal, and that “future parking” will be located over an existing 750 gallon septic tank and 100 foot drainfield located near the mudflats “when sewer is available”.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers documents indicate that the Saxon proposal calls for a 312’ x 40 ‘ building which would be built primarily on pilings above the mudflats. The building would house four retail areas and estuary viewing decks. The Corps of Engineers will consider the following factors in deciding whether or not to approve the development proposal: conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, consideration of property ownership and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people. Source: Documents obtained from Lane County Planning Department, July 27, 1998.

Note: Consent to Annex to City of Florence will be on City Council Agenda September 21.

If you need more information, wish to comment on this development before any of these agencies complete the approval process, or wish to request a public hearing, contact:

Jerry Kendall, Associate Planner, Lane County, 125 E. 8th, Eugene, OR 97439 (1-800-826-8978);

Chris Thoms, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Attn: CENWP-CO-GP, P.O. Box 2946, Portland, OR 97208-2946, (503) 808-4385 - Refer to ID Number 98-274;

Ed Sale, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, 811 S.W. Sixth Avenue, Portland, OR 97204, (1-800-452-4011);

Oregon Division of State Lands, 775 Summer Street, NE, Salem, OR 97310, (503) 378-3805;

Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development, 1175 Court Street, NE, Salem, OR 97310, (503) 373-0500 - Refer to ID Number 15281

City of Florence, Attn: Jim Mulder, P.O. Box 340, Florence, OR 97439, (541) 997-8237.

To prepare for such a disaster, officials and scientists in California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska and Hawaii are busy:

The Papua New Guinea tragedy, which killed thousands, “might be a wakeup call for people living near the ocean in earthquake-prone areas,” says oceanographer Eddie Bernard of Seattle. “I’m not saying this as an alarmist, I’m saying it as a point of fact: This is a hazard you need to be concerned about, just as you need to be concerned about other hazards in your everyday life.” (See Florence Area Tsunami Map)

Much of the tsunami-awareness program stems from 1992, when a 7.1 magnitude quake in the Cape Mendocino-Petrolia area caused a relatively harmless tsunami, perhaps 3’ high, on the north coast. By the time the tsunami hit Point Reyes, it was only 5” high.

But to the shock of scientists, the wave persisted up to eight hours as it bounced up and down the coast, “like coffee sloshing in a coffee cup,” as Bernard puts it. It was an ominous hint that researchers might have underestimated a future super-tsunami’s duration and potential punch.

The 15 to 20 foot high tsunami in Crescent City in 1964, triggered by a huge Alaska earthquake, wrecked 30 city blocks.

Tsunami concerns also have risen because of growing evidence that Pacific Northwest coastal quakes could be far worse than previously imagined. Pacific Northwest maga-quakes occur every several centuries, geological clues suggest. Source: Register Guard, July 25, 1998, from article by San Francisco Examiner.

For more information, contact Ms. Chris Thoms at the Army Corps of Engineers, (503) 808-4385. Source: May 6, 1998 Public Notice from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. (See CFF Newsletter - Fred Meyer)
 

6/8/98 - Defending the Dunes -- Shifting sand dunes might be the fastest-moving thing in the coastal town of Florence, Ore., population 6,200, and some residents would like to see it stay that way. but as the area’s timber and fishing industries die off, a new kind of development is moving in to take their place. In the spring of 1997, a few business people, retires and others concerned about a proposed mall formed Citizens For Florence. With a mission of “improving the livability of Florence through public education,” the group now keeps an eye on development projects. “Instead of being subject to the salesman’s pitch, we start digging into things,” says one supporter. Because of “direct and indirect intimidation" by developers, says spokeswoman Kathleen Sullivan, the group has no membership list; instead it relies on a loose network of about 100 people. Members have researched alternatives to a proposed sewage treatment plant, fought a superstore chain over its planned shopping complex in the area, and even purchased books on planning for the city council. For more information about the group’s ongoing activities, call 541/997-5432 or write to Citizens for Florence, P.O. Box 1212, Florence, OR 97439. Source: July 8, 1998, High Country News.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Cardani said the sewage spill at Waldport differed from other untreated sewage discharges by coastal communities whose treatment plans occasionally are flooded when heavy rainfall enters sewer lines. “This was not an act-of-God situation. This was avoidable,” said Cardani, who added that others may be charged in the incident.

Standing before U.S. District Judge Michael Hogan, Waldport Mayor Phyllis Boehme admitted that the city had been criminally negligent by allowing an incompetent public works supervisor to operate the sewage plant for a two-week period while the regular plant operator was absent on medical leave.

Portland lawyer Thomas Tongue, who represents the city, said the pollution caused no known property or personal damage. Source: Excerpts from article in The Register Guard, June 16, 1998, by Bill Bishop.

The case stemmed from an incident on May 22, 1995, at the Hollywood West Fred Meyer store in northeast Portland. Yolanda Blume said she was confronted by a store employee as she was leaving with two urchases comprising fried rice, pasta and chicken strips worth a total of $5.51.

She said a clerk searched her merchandise in a public area after she couldn't produce receipts. Eventually the clerks involved in the sales confirmed Blume had paid for the goods, but that they hadn't given her receipts. The case produced evidence of policies that the company allows non-security employees to "stop and detain customers at will and at random." State law allows merchants to restrain someone not randomly but only if there is "probable cause" to believe the person has stolen store property.

The jury also awarded Blume $25,000 in compensatory damages. The company's lawyers argued that the punitive damage award, which is supposed to deter similar behavior, was excessive. The Court of Appeals, rejecting the argument, said Wednesday that the conduct of store employees put customers in fear of being physically restrained if they did not produce receipts. "Adding to the reprehensibility of (the store's) conduct here is the evidence showing defendant's policy was followed even in the face of the employees' awareness that most people would not be able to produce a receipt," the court said in an opinion by Judge Paul De Muniz.

Employees established that most people left after purchases without taking receipts. Fred Meyer's conduct was "egregious" because it "not only resulted in plaintiff publicly being perceived as a thief but had the probability that others likewise would be humiliated and embarrassed and, perhaps, be falsely accused of stealing," the court said. Source: Article appearing in The World Newspaper, July 16, 1998, by Charles E. Beggs, Associated Press Writer. (See CFF Newsletter - Fred Meyer)

6/17/99 - Special Thanks to Donors -- Citizens For Florence held a silent auction on Sunday (June 14), featuring art works of many local artists. As president of CFF, I would like to thank the Callison Building owner for making space available and all the volunteers who worked so hard putting the auction together. I especially wish to thank all the donors. We couldn't have done it without their generosity.

And most of all, I want to thank the people of Florence for their support. The auction was a great success and Florence has once again shown that there is room in this town for all points of view. Source: The World Newspaper, June 27, 1998.

Tsunami is the Japanese name for renegade sea waves up to 100 feet high that are generated by earthquakes or landslides. And the person on the sign is likely out of luck trying to outrun the wave looming behind him. While the waves don't maintain their 500 mph top speed onshore, the pace of 30 mpg to 50 mpg is more than humans can do on foot.

That's why the federal government and the states of California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska and Hawaii want to improve the technology used to detect tsunamis and increase civil-disaster planning and public education. "We know that we're due for a big one," said George Crawford, earthquake program coordinator for Washington state's emergency management division.

The threat has taken on new urgency with evidence in the past 15 years that a coastal earthquake zone from Northern California to British Columbia -- the Cascadia subduction zone, where plates of the earth's crust are colliding -- is capable of generating giant quakes that could send tsunamis crashing ashore in a matter of minutes.

A steering group of representatives from federal agencies and the five states came up with a three-pronged approach: 

1. Hazard assessment -- A center was set up last year in Newport to help produce "tsunami inundation maps," (See Florence Tsunami Inundation Map) showing coastal areas that would be flooded by tsunamis. Local officials can use the maps to plot evacuation routes or decide locations for criitical facilities such as fire states and hospitals.

2. Warning guidance -- The region's network of seismic stations is being expanded and upgraded to better track the source and type of earthquakes for NOAA's tsunami warning centers.

3. Mitigation -- The "tsunami hazard zone" signs are one example, along with signs marking evacuation routes, informational brochures, school-evacuation drills, warning systems such as sirens, and other local efforts.

The "inundation maps" offer insights, but aren't intended to dictate land use planning. "What you can say is that in general, if an earthquake occurs like we envision and if a tsunami is produced like we envision, then this area will probably be flooded," said Eddie Bernard, director of the Pacific Marine Environemental Laboratory and chairman of the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program. "If your house is in the middle of it, that doesn't necessarily mean you're going to get blown away, but I would recommend that you figure out a way to protect your family in the event this happens." Source: Excerpts from article in The World Newspaper, June 24, 1998, by Rory Marshall, Associated Press Writer.