October’s annular eclipse
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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2023
VOL. 132, NO. 22
House fire claims local’s life Serving the Lower Columbia Region since 1891
WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
A house fire at 520 NE Spring Street in Clatskanie has claimed the life of local woman Rena Norman and resulted in a total loss of the structure. The fire was reported at 11:54 a.m. on Oct. 3, according to Clatskanie Rural Fire District Fire Chief Steve Sharek. Before Columbia County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) Deputies arrived, neighbors attempted to alert the homeowner by opening doors and yelling to attract their attention. Unfortunately, flames immediately erupted from the doors, causing the neighbors to leave the property, according to a release from the CCSO. The Clatskanie Rural Fire District quickly contained the fire but notified CCSO that a deceased woman had been located in the home. Norman was identified following an autopsy by the Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office. The Oregon State Fire Marshal and Oregon State Police Arson Investigators completed their in-
vestigation, and they determined the fire was not suspicious and appeared to have started accidentally in the house’s living room. The exact cause of the fire has not been released at this time. Responding agencies included Clatskanie Fire District, Columbia River Fire & Rescue, Mist Birkenfeld Fire District, Knappa Fire District, CCSO, Oregon State Police, and the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office, according to Sharek. Sharek said that incidents like these put a spotlight on fire safety and preparedness in case of emergency. “These fire incidents are a reminder that every home needs a working smoke detector, carbon monoxide detector, and fire extinguisher,” Sharek said. “For multiple level homes, a fire escape ladder is necessary to provide two ways of escape from upper levels.” Follow this developing story at thechiefnews.com and in the Friday print editions of the Chief.
Courtesy photo from Greg Hinkelman
The scene of the fatal house fire at 520 NE Spring Street.
Rainier fined $31,550 for DEQ violations WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has once again fined the City of Rainier for wastewater violations, an issue that has been recurring for the city in the past six years. In a Sept. 28 release, the DEQ issued 19 penalties, with Rainier incurring the highest fine amounting to $31,550. According to a DEQ letter to the city dated Aug. 11, the civil penalty was due to violations of the National Pollutants Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit by the city’s wastewater treatment plant and discharging untreated sewage “into the waters of the state.” “The main issue with the wastewater treatment facility, it’s basically a lack of separation between stormwater and wastewater,” Rainier City Administrator Scott Jorgensen said. “What happens is stormwater, especially during heavy rain events, infiltrates and gets into the wastewater system. What [that] does is it gives you an exceedance. Under your permit, you’re allowed a certain threshold, and that puts you over the threshold once you’ve got that stormwater infiltration.” Violations In the letter to the city, the DEQ stated that the reason for this penalty was because Rainier “continues to have significant ongoing issues maintaining compliance” with its NPDES permit. In the past six years, the city has experienced more than 100 Class I violations
Courtesy photo from Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership
The City of Rainier has experienced more than 100 Class I violations at its wastewater treatment plant in the past six years.
at its wastewater treatment plant, resulting in three prior enforcement actions. The letter stated that compliance with the NPDES permit is essential to protecting water quality and discharges of untreated sewage that pose a “significant threat” to public health and the environment. Between December 2022 and June 2023, Rainier exceeded its permit limits for Total Suspended Solids (TSS) 26 times and Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) concentration twice. TSS “means solids in wastewater that can be removed readily by standard filtering procedures in a laboratory,” according to the DEQ website. Examples of TSS could be
inorganic materials or particles like algae and bacteria. BOD generally represents how much oxygen is needed to break down organic matter in water. In addition to the permit violations, the letter noted that the city discharged undisinfected sewage into the Columbia River on Jan. 3, 2023, and a sanitary sewer overflow event on Jan. 15, 2023, that resulted in the discharge of approximately 20,000 gallons of raw untreated sewage into Fox Creek. On July 6 of this year, the DEQ conducted an inspection of the wastewater treatment plant, and though they found no violations, they noted a “lack of regular maintenance and housekeeping through-
out the facility was apparent” and may be contributing to the effluent violations. Finding solutions Something Jorgensen noted about the recurring issues with Rainier’s compliance with DEQ is that the department is willing to work with cities found in violation to mitigate the problems. “This is something that we take very seriously. We know that there’s a problem, we’re working to take care of it, and DEQ has been great to work with on this,” Jorgensen said. “It’s not an adversarial situation. They know that we have a problem, and they’re working with
us to solve it, and it will be solved.” The city has entered into an agreement with DEQ that would see them come into compliance with DEQ by 2027, according to Jorgensen. One of the steps the city has already taken is an “inflow and infiltration study.” This is a comprehensive look at the entire system to see what the sources of inflow and infiltration are. “When you have aging infrastructure like we do, there’s parts that have root intrusion. We’ve been talking with a company that specializes in that, where they put together this liquid, and it goes, and kind of reseals the areas that the root has gotten into the system and the line,” Jorgensen said. “So, some of it’s just repair of portions of lines that needs to be done.” Jorgensen said that the city has already had a 25 percent reduction in stormwater that is infiltrating their sewer system. The DEQ also allows those who receive fines to offset a portion of a penalty by funding a supplemental environmental project that improves Oregon’s environment. Rainier has a recent example of a mitigation project with their construction of a bioswale near the city’s boat launch. The bioswale is a trench that filters and treats rainwater before it enters the stormwater and wastewater system. “Our hope is to be able to do a couple more of these. So, we’ll take this; we’re not going to appeal
See VIOLATIONS Page A3
Clatskanie Harvest Festival closes out summer season Obituaries ................. A3 News and Views ...... A4 Classified Ads ......... A5 Legals ....................... A5 Sports ........................ A7 Crossword ................ A7 Solar Eclipse ............ A8
Contact The Chief Phone: 503-397-0116 Fax: 503-397-4093 chiefnews@countrymedia.net 1805 Columbia Blvd., St. Helens, OR 97051
Courtesy photo from Laurey White
Courtesy photo from Laurey White
The apple pressing station was pumping out cider all day long. LAUREY WHITE Chief Guest Article
The Harvest Festival held Sept. 30 marked the end of the Farmers Market season. It was another busy Saturday as residents gathered at Cope’s Park for a day full of fun. The market was abuzz with the happenings, from tons of apples being pressed to a “Clatskaknight” who, with the slice of his sword, showed overgrown vegetables who was boss.
Manager of the Farmers Market, Kelsey Angstrom, said everyone was pleased with the turnout at this year’s markets, noting a 40 % increase in attendance since last year. In years past, the closing of the season has been punctuated with the annual “Apple Press Fest,” an event where community members can bring apples down to Cope’s Park for pressing, and they walk away with their own apple juice. This year, Clatskanie Farmers Market Executive Director Jasmine Lillich
The Clatskaknight did not meet a veggie that he could not slay during the Harvest Festival.
expanded the celebration to a full-on harvest festival. While the event was expanded this year, the most popular event at the festival was still the apple press. People came from far and wide bringing their supply of apples and patiently waited in line for their turn. The rooster calling contest had several contestants, with Dick Craig and Sandy Moilen in a squawk off. Sandy just squeaked by, adding to her display with an impressive flourish of wing flapping.
The ClatskaKnight, aka Ken Tucker, and his trusty apprentice, his wife Liz, took center stage as he began to slay the vegetables presented. Lillich and the Farmers Market are hoping that the Harvest Festival will become an annual event in the community. Lillich already has ideas about what the festival could add in the future and wants community input to better form festivals in the coming years. Let us all raise a glass of apple cider to another great summer!