A minor flooding event on Hangman Creek in February increased sediment, debris, and pollutants in the Spokane River for over a week, leading to higher turbidity. These changes stress the river's ecosystem and affect water quality long-term.
Viewing entries by
Katy Scott
If you’ve been near the confluence of Hangman (Latah) Creek and the Spokane River this week, you’ve seen it—the river running thick with brown sediment, turning the water into a muddy plume that stretches for miles downstream. This dramatic transformation comes after a major rain-on-snow event, where warm rain rapidly melted accumulated snow, saturating the soil and flushing huge amounts of sediment into the creek. These events aren’t new—but how common are they, and how have they changed over time? To answer that, we looked at historical hydrology data from 1948 to 2023 to see how this year’s event compares to past peak flows.
A new bill (SB 5712 and companion HB 1937) moving through the Washington Legislature could weaken clean water protections, give polluters a free pass, and strip the Department of Ecology of its ability to enforce industrial stormwater rules. If passed, it would make immediate changes to industrial stormwater management—without any public input.
For centuries, the Spokane River’s flow has been shaped by a predictable rhythm: snow falling in the mountains during the winter and melting in the spring to sustain the river through the dry summer months. But now, that rhythm is changing, and with it, the future of the river is being rewritten.
Sometimes even new infrastructure doesn’t work as planned, and that’s what happened recently with a stormwater treatment facility in Spokane. Built to keep untreated runoff out of the Spokane River, the system hit a snag during a big storm, causing some overflow and pollution concerns.
For the first time, data submitted by Spokane Riverkeeper played a crucial role in Ecology’s assessment, setting a powerful example of how community efforts can drive meaningful environmental action.
Yesterday, October 29, the U.S. EPA issued a Final PCB TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load) for the Spokane River and Little Spokane River. This TMDL is a result of years of advocacy, scientific research, and legal action aimed at reducing harmful PCB pollution affecting our river and community health. However, we are disappointed in the final plan, and do not believe it will sufficiently reduce PCB levels in the river.
This November, your vote can make a real difference for the Spokane River and our community. Climate change poses an urgent challenge, affecting water quality, river health, and the ecosystems that depend on clean, flowing water. This election season, several ballot initiatives will challenge existing efforts to address these critical issues. Learn more about the pertinent initiatives and why we are opposing them in this article from Water Protector Katelyn Scott.
Urban rivers, like the Spokane River, face many challenges from various pollutants, one of which is a relatively new and concerning chemical: 6PPD-quinone. Learn more about the impacts of 6PPD-quinone, the Spokane River's vulnerability, and how new regulations protect our state's waterways.
Water conservation is more important than ever to protect the health of the Spokane River and ensure it remains a vibrant hub for recreation. On July 24, 2024, City Council declared a drought emergency, causing the Level 2 restrictions to come into action. We share more about the River-Aquifer connection and why water conservation is so important for a healthy river.
Spokane Riverkeeper, alongside several other environmental stakeholders, have been working hard to clean up the PCB contamination in the Spokane River and Little Spokane River. We submitted a comment letter to the EPA asking them to address significant concerns we have with the draft plan, particularly to ensure that the plan adequately addresses the human health concerns with PCBs.
On June 28, 2024, the US Supreme Court issued a ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc. v. Department of Commerce overturning the long-standing Chevron doctrine and changing the landscape of federal regulatory enforcement.
On April 16, 2024, Washington Department of Ecology declared a statewide drought emergency. In Spokane, where the flowing river defines the City landscape, the impact of drought can be particularly significant. But what exactly does a drought declaration from the Washington Department of Ecology mean, and how does it affect our River?
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken significant steps to address the issue of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) pollution. This month, the EPA announced two major rule changes aimed at increasing accountability for PFAS contamination. These changes represent a crucial milestone in safeguarding our drinking water and environment from the harmful effects of PFAS chemicals, but there is still significant action needed to protect our waterways and environment from these harmful chemicals.
In a recent decision, the Pollution Control Hearings Board made several key findings regarding regulation of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in the Spokane River. This ruling comes after five of the major dischargers (City of Spokane, Liberty Lake Sewer & Water District, Kaiser Aluminum, Inland Empire Paper Company, and Spokane County) challenged the effluent limits included in their NPDES permits issued in 2022.
The recent oil spill in the Spokane River, attributed to the Inland Empire Paper Co., has sparked great concern with the Spokane Riverkeeper. This incident, which occurred on Dec. 26, has not only raised questions about the effectiveness of spill response measures but also highlights the need for transparency and accountability in environmental protection efforts. (Inland Empire Paper is owned by the Cowles Co., which also owns The Spokesman-Review.)
Environmental legislation at its heart leans on the idea that polluters should be held accountable for any pollution they release into the environment. The Clean Water Act and similar state statutes are no different, utilizing civil penalties (fines) to punish bad actors and discourage improper discharging to the state’s waters. Read more about Spokane Riverkeeper’s role in holding polluters and regulators accountable.
Spokane Riverkeeper has been monitoring the response to an oil slick that was first reported to us on December 26, 2023, near the Argonne bridge. We now know this has been reported as a mineral lubricant oil from a cooling equipment failure. Here are the facts as we know so far and what we are doing about it.
Spokane Riverkeeper is closely monitoring a new lawsuit challenging the Washington Water Quality Standards for PCBs. This lawsuit was brought against the US EPA by various industry groups, including Greater Spokane, Inc. (GSI).
As part of protecting the Spokane River, we provide public comments on regulations and permits proposed by government agencies. We recently submitted comments on a municipal stormwater permit urging Washington Department of Ecology to enact tougher stormwater protections and comments on Ecology’s water clean up plan priorities regulation advocating for a temperature clean up plan for the Spokane River.