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Combination of new and returning players could add up to a successful year for the Viks
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Willamette polluted during PSU construction Fortis Construction fined for releasing slurry water into river ERIN MCINTYRE VANGUARD STAFF
Last week, the Department of Environmental Quality issued a $6,733 fine against Fortis Construction for discharging 5,000 gallons of turbid slurry water into the Willamette River on Aug. 25 while working on Portland State’s campus loop project. According to Rodney Weick, the DEQ’s water quality manager, subcontractors of Fortis Construction were drilling geothermal wells at the corner of Southwest 10th Avenue and Southwest Montgomery Street, creating drilling mud that was drained into a banker tank. “The banker tank was then drained into a storm drain that discharged into the Willamette River by the marina,” he said. The sediment created a plume and the DEQ received several complaints from people living in the area. Once the sediment—a claylike substance—mixed with
the river water, it created the slurry. According to Weick, when discharge of this type is released into a river the high level of sediment is toxic to fish and other aquatic life because it removes oxygen from the water and affects the respiratory process of fish. Draining drilling water into the storm drain is not standard procedure, and doing so created a water violation, as the consequent turbidity exceeded the maximum allowed by water quality standards. The normal procedure for disposing of polluted or dirty water is to contain and treat the water, reduce the sediment until it meets water quality standards and then discharge it. “I have no idea why they didn’t do that,” Weick said. In addition to the fine, Fortis has been responsible for the clean-up of the slurry water, which had to be removed from the street and the storm sewer system at PSU all the way down to the river. Ed Barajas, project manager of Fortis, said that at the time of the accident, Fortis was working with the Bureau of Environmental Services and the City of Portland to obtain a discharge permit.
Portland State student project featured at Earth Awards Commonwealth Pavilion provides sustainable refuge to students in Ladakh SIERRA PANNABECKER VANGUARD STAFF
Fortis will not appeal the decision reached by the DEQ, it will be passing the fines onto its subcontractor. “We are going to have tighter control with our subcontractors and make sure they
Ladakh, a mountainous region bordered by Tibet and Kashmir, has highly disputed political borders and is under constant threat of military insurgence. This summer, a non-profit organization led by Sergio Palleroni, associate professor of architecture at Portland State, visited the region’s Druk White Lotus School and held classes in a 172-squarefoot tent—constructed out of old military parachutes— known as the Commonwealth Pavilion. The tent was designed by Palleroni, who is known internationally for his sustainability work in developing countries. This year Palleroni judged the Earth Awards, which recognizes ecologically sustainable projects in fields ranging from art to architecture. In the weeks leading up to the awards ceremony, Prince Charles of England called for submissions of sustainable pavilions that represented cohesiveness within communities to be displayed at his London home. Palleroni took the challenge to Ladakh, where a crew of American students were working to improve the Druk White Lotus School.
POLLUTION
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AUGUST MILLER/VANGUARD STAFF
Construction troubles: Drilling from the campus loop project released polluted water into the Willamette River.
“In the process [the bureau] communicated that we could discharge water to the storm system [and] that we did not need a permit,” Barajas said. “That was a miscommunication we had with [the bureau] and the city of Portland.” Barajas said their subcon-
tractor took it upon itself to discharge the water without Fortis’s approval. “We told them specifically that before they discharge any dirty water that they’re supposed to inform us, which they did not,” Barajas said. According to Barajas, though
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Grant awarded to Portland-based Native American Youth and Family Center Grant aims to increase enrollment of underrepresented students in higher education ERICK BENGEL VANGUARD STAFF
DINING GUIDE 2010 PICK UP THIS THURSDAY'S PAPER TO FIND THE VANGUARD'S ANNUAL DINING GUIDE. IT FEATURES THE BEST BREAKFASTS, LUNCHES AND DINNERS IN EVERY PORTLAND NEIGHBORHOOD!
The Oregon University System awarded a $56,250 grant earlier this month to northeast Portland’s Native American Youth and Family Center [NAYA] for the purpose of funding the organization’s “Ladder to Success” program, which is designed to provide community outreach to American Indian and Alaskan Native families. “Even though we’re seeing record enrollments at OUS institutions…we’re not seeing that representation drifting down to groups that have traditionally not been in college,” said Stephanie Carnahan, OUS director of college access programs. “We want to
make sure that underrepresented students and low-income students are in college to the same degree that other students who traditionally go to college and their peers are going.” Of the $1.5 million grant that Oregon received from the U.S. Department of Education in August, $607,000 was funneled through OUS to the College Access Challenge Grant Program [CACGP]. Though 62 organizations applied for the grant, NAYA’s “Ladder to Success” program was one of only 12 pre-college preparation programs that CACGP decided to fund, Carnahan said. “The overarching goal of the [CACGP] program is to increase the number of K–12 students who are prepared to enter and succeed in post-secondary education,” Carnahan said. Although NAYA’s grant originally amounted to $75,000, the ad hoc committee in charge of selecting the grant recipients reduced the amount by 25 percent to more evenly distribute the funds among the selected organizations.
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