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Eugene Weekly : 12.18.03 Page 5 of 8 <br /> treatment plant on North Baxter Road. In February1999,the company's monitoring report <br /> ® showed that stormwater discharge concentrations of four pollutants exceeded the permitted <br /> limits. Arsenic and suspended sediments were sampled at twice the permitted <br /> concentrations, zinc was sampled at 14 times the permitted concentration, and copper was <br /> sampled at 49 times the permitted concentration. <br /> "It is unacceptable to have 1.2 pounds per day of copper and 3.3 pounds per day of zinc <br /> released into the environment from a facility that is under an NPDES permit which is <br /> supposed to be limiting and controlling these parameters," wrote Peter Ruffier, the <br /> wastewater director of the city of Eugene, in an internal memo. <br /> Under pressure from the city and its residents,the company installed more monitoring <br /> wells around the plant and improved its stormwater collection and treatment system. The <br /> monitoring report for October 2003 showed the contaminants in Baxter's stormwater to be <br /> within the permitted limits. <br /> On the DEQ's List <br /> Meanwhile, the concentration of arsenic in Amazon Creek has caught the DEQ's attention. <br /> Oregon's DEQ maintains a list of the state's stream segments that fail to meet water quality <br /> standards. Called the 303(d)List because it is required by section 303(d)of the federal <br /> • Clean Water Act, the list is updated every two years. <br /> Amazon Creek is on the 2002 303(d) List for arsenic, <br /> lead, and E. coli levels exceedingthe permitted it <br /> MI w <br /> WEST 11TH :2Cg <br /> WPM TT( AVF neaiuv <br /> standards. The Amazon Diversion Channel,which5, 'III ALIA20II a�E " <br /> splits off from Amazon Creek just south of Royal PARK <br /> Avenue and flows to Fern Ridge Reservoir,was first -- =- <br /> listed in 1998 for inflated levels of dissolved oxygen �'�.., r WEST EUC3E►tE <br /> and fecal coliform, which indicates contamination by <br /> Violawat,varTfC <br /> 041111! 1111201 <br /> sewage or animal waste. . <br /> According to the DEQ,these pollutants degrade the creek's ability to support aquatic life, <br /> render fish and water inconsumable, and make recreation in the creek a potential risk to <br /> human health. <br /> Amazon Creek's toxic report card makes it easy to dismiss the creek as a polluted ditch, <br /> good only for preventing floods. But some people see it as an opportunity for local action. <br /> Restoration Efforts <br /> • Gilmore stands by the bank of Amazon Creek in huge plastic sunglasses and a puffy blue <br /> jacket. His short red hair pokes out beneath a fleece cap with earflaps, and on his feet are <br /> pink tie-dyed socks and worn tennis shoes. An active member of the Long Tom Watershed <br /> Council, Gilmore recently helped with the restoration of a section of Amazon Creek in <br /> http://www.eugeneweekly.com/archive/12_18_03/coverstory.html 1/6/04 <br />