Rainbow water district may face big fines for sewage spill

By: DARRYN BENNETT - Staff Writer
District engineer says spill could have been avoided | Wednesday, September 19, 2007 11:09 PM PDT ∞

BONSALL -- A 540,000-gallon sewage spill that could cost the Rainbow Municipal Water District $5 million in fines "absolutely" could have been avoided if the district hadn't abandoned plans two years ago to build roads into the area, a district engineer said Wednesday.

Two days elapsed before crews were able to pinpoint the exact location of the Sept. 4 spill north of I-15 because many of the manholes in the area are buried and inaccessible for routine maintenance, according to a district staff report.

District officials said Wednesday the spill doesn't pose a threat to the water supply and that all upstream sewage flow was immediately diverted into container trucks. Ratepayers won't experience any service disruptions, said Gene Buckley, the district's interim general manager, adding that any fines levied against the district won't lead to increases in water bills.

The district said it discovered the spill, caused by overgrown roots blocking the pipe, on Sept. 4 after an abnormal meter reading. A road stretching 200 feet into the area was constructed so crews could contain the spill. Roughly 70 percent of the blockage has been removed, but crews still haven't gained the access necessary to complete the job, district engineer Brian Lee said.

"We're not Lewis and Clark, and these manholes are nearly impossible to find," he said. "Gaining access to these manholes so we could properly maintain them should be a very high priority."

The only other alternative, Lee said, is to relocate the line entirely.

Last week, Lee recommended a $2.5 million, three-phase project to the Board of Directors to lessen damage, update facilities and prevent future root intrusions. That estimate doesn't include any fines levied by the Regional Water Control Board against the district.

Currently, the district is stuck in the first phase of the proposal, repairing damage resulting from the spill and the road. Lee said later phases won't be discussed until late October. Clean-up efforts, the district said, have also been slow because the affected area is environmentally sensitive and home to several protected species, so the district has to work with multiple state agencies.

"We can't just go plowing through it with a bulldozer," said Buckley, the district manager.

Lee said the regional water board probably will not levy the maximum fine allowed by law, but that the district must abide by its laundry list of requirements to clean up the spill. Lee added that he would be "ecstatic" if the regional water board decided to only impose the minimum of $10,000 in fines, or another amount less than the maximum $5 million.

A proposal to build roads to increase access to the spill area was turned down by Rainbow's board two years ago after the California Department of Health Services cited the board for failing to cover its open-water reservoirs. After fines were levied, Lee said, the board halted all other capital projects to save money.

"It's possible, but hard to say for certain, if the blockage would have been prevented," Buckley said, "but if the manholes had been more accessible, maintaining the lines would have been easier."

Lee added that the water control board considers a district's history when determining the amount of the fines levied. Rainbow's last major spill was in 2003, and although the district has a "politically spotty history," its environmental record is sound.

"I'm working to demonstrate that although most of the information people have about us involves our high turnover rates, that has nothing to do with the day-to-day operations," Lee said. "I need to make the regional board understand that difference."

Dave Seymour, hired as general manager by district directors last month, was scheduled to take over Monday, but that date has been pushed back for undisclosed reasons.

"He is already up to speed on the situation and will be ready to jump in next week," Buckley said.

-- Contact Darryn Bennett at (760) 740-5420 or by e-mail at dmbennett@nctimes.com.