DISCOVERY BAY — A state agency is once again fining this town’s Community Services District for releasing contaminated water into Old River.
The State Water Resources Control Board announced Tuesday that it will fine the Discovery Bay wastewater treatment plant for dumping water containing more than the legal limit of coliform bacteria on seven occasions during the past three years.
The town also dumped wastewater that exceed the limit for electrical conductivity once during that period, according to the board.
Virgil Koehne, the town official in charge of wastewater treatment, said the company that treats Discovery Bay’s sewage will take responsibility for paying the $15,000 fine and figuring out how to avoid future mistakes.
The Community Services District is responsible for overseeing water, wastewater and parks in the unincorporated community.
Over the past decade or so, the town wracked up $100,000 in fines for copper contamination in its wastewater. More recently, the services district has partnered with UC Berkeley scientists to determine whether the latest advancements in artificial wetlands could help clean the town’s sewage.
Koehne said this newest violation is not a cause for concern.
“We’ve done some improvement to the facility, and we should not get these fines any more,” he said. “Or at least we should hardly get any of them. Things happen.”
Contact Hannah Dreier at 925-779-7174. Follow her at Twitter.com/hannahdreier
