Oregon Public Broadcasting

Clackamas County should put an end to its repeated releases of sewage into the Willamette River, under a new agreement.

The Kellogg sewage facility in Milwaukie has been overflowing regularly, but that should be fixed by expanding capacity at the Tri-City plant in Oregon City.

In a memorandum of agreement signed with Clackamas County commissioners, state environmental regulators have agreed to reduce pollution fines, so long as the $117 million project is completed.

Clackamas County chair, Lynn Peterson, says the new system is a cost-effective alternative to having her county, and nearby cities, all expand sewers independently.

Lynn Peterson: “We will be able to see a cost savings of at least $300 million over the next 20 years to ratepayers, and those efficiencies are really important, when we talk about making growth pay for itself.”

Peterson estimates that separate systems would cost local governments roughly a billion dollars in the next twenty years.

She says they'll spend $700 million under the new collaborative arrangement.

Expansion of the Tri-City facility in Oregon City is expected to begin next year.

Clackamas County will sell a $95 million revenue bond to cover most of the project. That’s not subject to a public vote.