The Suburban Times

A community bulletin board for Western Pierce County.

Letter: Responsibility for the cleanup of polluted Waughop Lake

By

Submitted by Don Russell.

Dear Representatives Kilduff and Leavitt and Senator O’Ban,

It has now been 19 days since I sent the below request to you.  So far I have received no response from you.  Why is this so?

Meanwhile a number of articles on this subject have appeared in The Suburban Times about the wisdom and propriety of the City of Lakewood’s City Council’s accepting responsibility for the cleanup of polluted Waughop Lake.  Waughop Lake’s pollution has been caused by the actions of two State owned institutions.  Not by the actions of the City of Lakewood.

Photograph of a hazardous algal bloom at Waughop Lake.

Various rationalizations have been offered by City staff personnel and accepted by City Council members as to why the City of Lakewood should accept responsibility for the cleanup of Waughop Lake.  None make any sense.

It is the responsibility of Ecology under provisions of the Federal Clean Water Act to act or require others to act to assure the safe beneficial uses of State owned water.  The toxic algae condition of Waughop Lake poses a serious public health threat to all who expose themselves to Waughop Lake’s cyanotoxin laden water whether by direct contact or inhalation of the cyanotoxin laden aerosols that emanate from this lake. Yet nothing is being done to provide adequate funding (approximately $2.5 million) to remove the layer of nutrient polluted sediment that is the proximate cause of Waughop Lake’s toxic condition.  This condition is the result of 100 years of discharge of animal and human waste (sewage) into Waughop Lake by Western State Hospital and Pierce College.  It is an axiom that those who pollute are required to act to mitigate the condition caused by their discharge of pollutants into State owned waters.

The City’s consultants’ recommendation, approved by City Council members, is that a massive dose (i.e., tons) of liquid alum and sodium aluminate be discharged into Waughop Lake to inactivate the phosphorus contained in the water column and in various (10 to 22 cm) depths of the nutrient polluted sediment.  Such an action is environmentally and fiscally irresponsible and contrary to Ecology’s own recommendation that minimal quantities of chemicals be added to State owned waters.

We citizens expect our elected representative to act to assure that the air we breath and the water we recreate in provides us safe beneficial use.  This is not what Fort Steilacoom park goers are exposed to when attempting to recreate on, in or in the vicinity of nutrient polluted/toxic Cyanobacteria infested/excessive aquatic plant growth Waughop Lake.

We citizens would appreciate it if you, Ecology, and the City of Lakewood Council would do your respective jobs so Waughop Lake does assure safe beneficial use by all.

Comments

  1. Excellent!!!!!!! I was considering writing members of our state government as well on this issue, but you beat me to it, and did one heck of a nice job at that, so THANK YOU!!

    ekc

  2. If the City of Lakewood pushes the state to hard to get them to pay for the lake cleanup then they risk future funding and grants. This seems to be a higher priority to the city leaders then the safety of the lake and the barns. It’s all political.

  3. Good job to all that have put the long hour’s into all this information about doing the right process. Tough part is getting the City and State to stand tall and really going through with the right process, making them do the right path in this clean up. Now if we could blame a boater, yes one person who we could point our finger at besides the City and State then it would be done! All these law’s just don’t seem to apply to the bid dog’s, how come? And all the money that seems to be available right now would be put into a trust to make sure it really goes into the lake cleanup, right?

  4. Don…yesterday I sent an email to Senator O’ban and Reps Leavitt & Kilduff admonishing them for not replying to your letter and asking them to get the Governor on board to do what you and many others know what is the responsible and right solution….as yet, I have no response as well.

    I would be happy to share that email w/you or anyone else interested in its contents. I believe my email address is available thru The Suburban Times.

  5. You’re pushing a rock up a hill on this. Neither politicians nor nature can be convinced to solve this problem to your liking. Politicians won’t do what’s right and if nature could take its own course unimpeded the problem would solve itself…………the lake would naturally turn into a swamp and thereafter a meadow. Maybe nature’s way is best. It would give us a chance, at no cost, to witness the miracle of natural change much like what is happening on Mt. St. Helens. This is an educational opportunity that everyone can support……except for the fact that politicians love spending money on “problems” that can’t be fixed.

    • John you mischaracterize the issue at hand. My request is not “that this problem be solved to my liking.” It a matter of whether the State will comply with provisions of the Federal Clean Water Act, i.e., act, or require others to act (Western State Hospital and Pierce College), to cleanup the pollutants that they discharged into State owned Waughop Lake or not.

      The City of Lakewood has no culpability here. However the City has offered to cleanup Waughop Lake on behalf of Western State Hospitatl and Pierce College provided that the State provides the City adequate funding to effectuate the cleanup operation.

      Until Waughop Lake is capable of providing park goers safe beneficial recreational use if would be irresponsible for the City to take over responsibility for the ongoing safe beneficial recreational use responsible management of Waughop Lake.

      You better believe that if you had discharged animal and human waste into Waughop Lake that they would be all over you to either clean it up or go to prison for you crime.