PSU Magazine Fall 1999

By Jack Yost It's the The Willamette River may soon sate the thirst of local communities. © f you were adrift on the lower Willamette River, dying of thirst, you might feel, along with the Ancient Mariner, that though the water was everywhere, there was not a drop you could drink. In many ways, the health of the river has improved over the past several decades. Oxygen levels are up , and the fi sh are back. But during heavy rains, Portland's raw sewage still overflows into storm drains and spills into the river. Tox ic metals, pesticides, and other pollutants from industrial, city, and agricultural runoff find their way into the river as well. In a recent study of 19 of the nation's major rive rs, including the Hudson and Potomac, the Willamette was rated as one of the most degraded. So who would even think of drink– ing this water? The metropolitan communities of Wilsonville and Tigard, for starters. C ity councils in both towns recently voted to build a new treatment plant in order to tap the vast nearby resource. Tualatin and Sherwood are also considering using the treated water. For Wilsonville , it's an urgent matter. With its groundwater supplies tapped out and no other sources avail– able, the fas t-growing suburb has put a moratorium on new development. Tigard , while connected to Portland's water system, is edgy about the issue of local control. Its contract with Portland obliges the big city only to sell it "surplus" water. Theoretically, Portland could ra ise prices arbitrarily or cut off supplies altogether in an emergency. ® owever compelling the reasons for using the Willamette, many people who might one day drink the water don't cotton to the notion . Opponents of the plan in Wilsonville and Tigard have placed charter amendment measures on the September ballot in both cities. If approved, residents would be able to veto their councils' decisions. The controversy swirls around two central questions. First, will the treated water be safe?