Is sewer water making a return to our river?

After experiencing the city of Sandpoint's sewer plant accident last month, we now get to hear how Southside Sewer and Water District is back planning to build its sewer plant on the river. In 2004, the community, the Pend Oreille Basin Commission and the EPA told SSWD's board to find an alterative to discharging treated sewer water into our river. The board currently claims they exhausted all other options and the only option that remains is to build another sewer plant on the river.

SSWD was formed to prevent the deteriorating septic systems or lack of septic systems from leaking into the river and lake. Now, the SSWD board wants to build a plant that would create more pollution. There are other options. There is land which SSWD has looked at as a possible site to increase their current land application process. The city of Dover and its new state of art membrane system will be available to provide for all of SSWD sewer needs. Thirdly, there are possible green solutions which could be less expensive and quicker than any solution.

I encourage every citizen, every user of our river to attend the Pend Oreille Basin Commission meeting on Friday from 2-5 p.m. at the Panhandle Health District, 322 Marion St., Sandpoint. At this meeting, we can express to the commission our desire for a responsible solution to SSWD's problem of needing to expand its capacity.

OWEN MARCUS

Sandpoint