A16
News
Blue Mountain Eagle
WASTEWATER
Continued from Page A1
reclaimed water at an agreed
upon price. Or, the city could
petition the state for financ-
ing and create a similar fa-
cility by paying the cost
upfront and owning its own
wastewater facility.
Green said the city is evalu-
ating both courses of action. A
new plant is estimated to cost
between 8-12 million dollars.
Sustainable Water would
require a water purchase agree-
PHQWWREXLOGDSODQW²³D¿-
nancing vehicle that allows
Sustainable Water to fully con-
struct and operate water recla-
mation systems at no capital
expense or development risk
to the end user,” Sustainable
Water’s website states.
The current plant process-
es roughly 200,000 gallons of
waste a day and is outdated.
Fluid leaks from the sides of
old concrete tanks, and em-
ployees must remove solid gar-
bage manually by using rakes.
“When people ask, ‘Why
are we making this investment?’
I want to bring them out here
with rakes and have them pull
garbage out of the headworks,”
he said. “Because that’s what
these (city public works) guys
are doing.”
Gurczynski said student safety is
a top priority but also noted the test-
ing was expensive, $60 per fountain,
Continued from Page A1
which quickly adds up even for a small
She said she has removed some of school.
All school districts will soon have
the fountains and replaced them with
RQHWKDWLV¿OWHUHGDQGFDQ¿OOERWWOHV to develop a plan to regularly test for
in the hallway by the elementary re- lead and radon as well, after the Ore-
gon Board of Education recently ad-
strooms.
Of the other Grant County schools opted a new rule.
The board in June agreed to fast-
tested, only Monument School Dis-
trict had high levels, .0188 mg/L, but track adoption of the rule at the request
a handwritten note on the results states of Gov. Kate Brown, after widespread
it is a custodial sink with no drinking media coverage of a scandal in Port-
fountain. The next highest result was land Public Schools over lead in drink-
ing water that went unreported.
.0117 in the weight room.
The rule requires school districts
In Long Creek’s two tests, the kitch-
en sink tested highest at .00198 mg/L. to submit a preliminary plan for test-
The highest level in Dayville was ing for both lead and radon by Oct. 1,
.00374 mg/L. For Grant Union, the ZLWKD¿QDOSODQGXHE\-DQ:KLOH
highest level detected at the junior-se- WKHUXOHJLYHVQRVSHFL¿FGHDGOLQHIRU
nior high school was .00242 mg/L; testing for lead, it does require districts
Seneca, .00126 mg/L; and Humbolt to report results to the public within
¿YHEXVLQHVVGD\VDQGWRVHQGRXWDQ
Elementary, .011 mg/L.
Gurczynski said she has not re- annual report.
“What we like about this plan is
ceived any complaints about high lead
levels in students. The EPA reports that part of what we saw in Portland
high levels of lead can cause brain, red was the community didn’t have ac-
blood cell and kidney damage in chil- cess to information, and in fact, when
dren. She said the district also tested you have large institutions information
for copper on the second test, but all can get lost over the years,” said Em-
were below the EPA action level of 1.3 ily Nazarov, operations policy analyst
with the Oregon Department of Edu-
mg/L.
cation, who headed up the rulemaking.
“By creating a plan you have one
place that community members and
SDUHQWV FDQ ORRN WR ¿QG RXW KRZ
does the school district address ra-
don, how does the school district
plan to address water.”
The Board of Education pushed
ahead with the rule despite protests
from school advocates who said the
timeline was too tight and expressed
ZRUU\DERXWZKHUHWR¿QGPRQH\WR
address the cost of testing and mit-
igation.
“You are setting up a framework
by which we have assurances at
the state level that our schools are
taking action in a comprehensive
way toward health and safety,” said
2UHJRQ &KLHI (GXFDWLRQ 2I¿FHU
Lindsey Capps. “It’s an imperative
that every student should be enti-
tled to.”
The requirement will entail hun-
dreds of millions of dollars in addi-
tional costs to schools in the form
of testing, supplying bottle water,
mitigation and testing individuals
who might have been exposed to
high levels of lead, according to the
Oregon School Boards Association.
Capital Bureau reporter Paris
Achen contributed to this report.
PC
tournament last year, after winning
the district tournament. Adrian placed
second, and Jordan Valley third at dis-
tricts.
The Panthers hope the season ends
on a better note, but the main thing,
Lance said, is they give it their all.
“We’re in a position to be very
competitive in league,” Lance said.
“If they know they put it all out there
RQWKHÀRRUDQGFRQWLQXDOO\WU\WRLP-
prove throughout the season, then they
should be proud of wherever they end
up, as far as league standings.”
Teams invited to Saturday’s Prai-
rie City Tournament include: Joseph,
Harper/Huntington, Jordan Valley,
Adrian, Union and Cove. Games start
at 8:30 a.m. and junior varsity teams
will play in the old gym.
LEAD
Continued from Page A8
hitter. “Taci is a good addition to our
team. We all get along and that’s what
makes it fun.”
Jones, who is a middle hitter, said
she’s impressed with the incoming
freshmen.
“They’re a really good addition to
the team,” she said. “I think that once
we have more practice, we’re going
to do really well. We work really well
together with no drama. That’s really
helpful for our dynamic as a team.”
Perrenoud is a libero, or defensive
specialist, for the team.
Her family moved to Prairie City
this summer from Wyoming. She said
she’s looking forward to getting to
know the state and plans to attend col-
lege in Oregon.
She played volleyball in middle
school, and was more recently in-
volved with track and cheerleading.
“I enjoy the way we learn together
and the way we pick each other up,”
she said. “I’m excited for the volleyball
season because I think we’ll do really
good.”
In the 1A High Desert League this
year, the Panthers will face Monument/
Dayville, Adrian, Jordan Valley, Crane,
Burnt River and Harper/Huntington,
Long Creek and Ukiah.
Crane and Adrian are usually their
toughest opponents, the co-coaches
said.
&UDQH ¿QLVKHG VL[WK LQ WKH VWDWH
Wednesday, August 31, 2016
Oren Wyss is the treatment
plant operator and one of the
people charged with using the
rakes. Wyss said the biggest
problem with the facility is
the quality of the treatment.
“It doesn’t take out nitrites.
It doesn’t take out nitrates.
Phosphorous removal is pret-
ty much none and those are
the three main things why we
can’t discharge into the river,”
Wyss said.
“This is World War II-
era technology, that is Viet-
nam-era technology,” Green
said, gesturing around to vari-
ous parts of the plant. “We’re
wanting next-gen technolo-
gy.”
Rescue” and “Radio Tech/Communica-
tions,” though the document also says
Peterson is appointed “to do and per-
Continued from Page A1
form any act which (Palmer) might per-
property or had a right to acquire or form as Sheriff, this appointment to be
dispose of it as he did, which would and reamin (sic) in full force and effect
have been a valid defense under Or- during my pleasure.”
Palmer did not respond to an email
egon law.
7KH ¿UVWGHJUHH DJJUDYDWHG WKHIW Friday evening asking if Peterson was
and possession of a stolen vehicle still an active deputy.
Palmer originally investigated the
FKDUJHV ZHUH IRU ZLWKKROGLQJ ¿UH
vehicles and equipment in excess complaint against Peterson.
In an April 25, 2013, letter, Palmer
of $10,000 from the Monument Rural
Fire District on or about Feb. 21, 2013. told Oregon Department of Forestry
The charges stem from an investiga- State Forester Doug Decker he started
tion by the Oregon State Police and the investigating “an alleged criminal case”
Oregon Department of Justice that be- in 2010 between the city of Monument
gan in May 2013. Police served a search DQGWKHUXUDO¿UHGLVWULFWRYHUHTXLSPHQW
warrant in October 2013 at a property in obtained “legally and lawfully through
WKH0RQXPHQWDUHDDQGVHL]HG¿UHYH- ODF” by Peterson.
hicles and evidence for the case.
Palmer said “there was a dispute as
The indictment count for possession to who lawfully owned what equipment
of a stolen vehicle lists “a 1970 Ford, and how some of the funding was chan-
a 1974 Freightliner, a 1983 Ford L9M, neled through the City’s Federal Tax ID
a 1993 Ford F350, a second 1993 Ford number and their (Dun & Bradstreet
F350, a 1965 Western States, a 1966 number).” He said Ryan Joslin, the dis-
Ford 900, a 1974 Western States, a 1986 trict attorney at the time, informed the
Ford Econoline, and a 1988 Internation- parties the issue was a civil matter.
al.”
3DOPHU¶V OHWWHU LQGLFDWHG WKH ¿UH
For about a decade, Peterson was a district board believed it rightly owned
vocal advocate for establishing a rural the equipment, because it was procured
¿UHSURWHFWLRQGLVWULFWLQWKH0RQXPHQW with grants in the name of “Monument
area. He was chief of Monument’s city Rural Fire District.” However, Palmer
department at one time and also acted as said “the grantee” — Peterson — ob-
chief of the rural district that was yet to tained the equipment legally and still
be formalized.
possessed it.
After the rural district was formed
Palmer also said the equipment was
by voters in November 2012, the newly on private property, and there was no
installed board and Peterson differed on probable cause a crime was committed,
its management and operation. Noting QRUMXVWL¿FDWLRQIRUDVHDUFKZDUUDQW
challenges with meeting procedures,
“As it stands right now ... I do not
operations, equipment and leadership, have enough evidence, nor do I believe
all of the board members resigned in I have the authority to intervene in this
December 2012.
dispute,” he wrote.
The board was re-established in
When Palmer deputized Peterson,
January 2013 when the Grant County he joined a long list of Grant County
Court appointed new members. The deputies. The sheriff has deputized 69
new chief of the district asked Peterson people in a variety of categories, includ-
to return the equipment to the district, ing deputy, corrections, reserve, search
but he did not.
and rescue, chaplain, special deputy,
Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer public lands patrol, public lands deputy
deputized Peterson March 1 of this year and natural resource committee.
to assist with a search and rescue oper-
Oregon law says sheriffs are re-
DWLRQ3DOPHU¶VRI¿FLDOGHSXW\DSSRLQW- sponsible for the conduct of their
ment of Peterson mentions “Search & deputies.
GUILTY
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