The following email below arrived today announcing that the state Department of Ecology has fined King County for the West Point Treatment Plant spill that occured in December of last year.

The plant at idealic Discovery Park–Magnolia’s treasure–is an important part of our city’s public infrasturcture.

What is interesting about this little note is that it is a symbolic representation of the need for government accountability regardless of the consequences, politics or ability to wave it off.

An argument can be made that $24,000 fine is a silly amount given that it probably took much more than that in employee staff time to assess and study the spill. But it’s important that governments at all levels be forced to ‘eat their own dog food’, if you will, regarding regulation.

Too often when one entity of government is at fault another level of government waves off the consequences. Perhaps this small fine is appropriate and perhaps not, I can’t judge that decision, but I appreciate the symbolism regardless.

Discovery Park is one of our city’s greatest treasures. The spill was not horrific by environmental standards but it is an eye opening reminder of the need for diligence.

Here’s the notice:

“The state Department of Ecology is fining King County $24,000 over the Dec. 14-15, 2009 discharge of untreated wastewater from the West Point Treatment Plant Seattle. Ecology found the release could have been prevented, and, once it occurred, greatly reduced. The 8.7-million-gallon release began at 10:02 p.m. Dec. 14, 2009, and lasted 2 hours and 52 minutes. An electrical short circuit in a no-longer-used system, coupled with operator error, caused an emergency bypass gate to open, diverting a portion of the incoming wastewater around the treatment system and into Puget Sound off West Point. The release had originally been estimated at 10 million gallons.”

Your partner in service,

Reuven.