[NOTE: The sewage spill occurred on August 4, 2020. Information from the City of Sedona was first made available on August 5. Updates appear below with the original story.]
Thursday, September 3 update on sewage spill
Sedona AZ (September 4, 2020) – Water quality counts taken between 8:40 and 10:01 a.m. on Sept. 2, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming.
It takes approximately 24 hours to receive test results, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 235 CFU/100 mL Beach Action Value (BAV) of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
Going forward
After one month of testing, with most results consistently under the 235 (CFU)/100mL threshold, the city will no longer give E. coli test result updates. The city will meet with stakeholders including representatives from Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Oak Creek Watershed Council, Arizona State Parks, agriculture and others in the coming weeks to review all components of the incident and amend protocols that need to be updated.
More information
Read more details of the spill here and the resumption of construction here.
For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, please visit www.sr179sewermainreplacement.com. To contact a project team member with questions regarding this event, email news@sr179sewermainreplacement.com or call the Project Hotline at (928) 852-4164.
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Thursday, Aug. 27 update on sewage spill
Sedona AZ (August 27, 2020) – Water quality counts taken between 7:55 and 9:02 a.m. on Aug. 26, 2020 show E.coli levels at all but one of the test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming.
It takes approximately 24 hours to receive test results, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 235 CFU/100 mL Beach Action Value (BAV) of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
In alignment with Arizona Department of Environmental Quality’s (ADEQ) assessment that the sewage from the spill has long-since passed, it is unlikely that any spikes in E. coli results, like the one on Aug. 26, 2020 at Red Rock Crossing, are related to the sewer spill.
The city remains engaged with ADEQ, county health departments, and community partners like the Oak Creek Watershed Council to solicit input on performing any other testing or analysis. Also, the city will kick off a stakeholders meeting with representatives from these organizations and residents in September to review all components of the incident and amend protocols that need to be updated.
More information
Read more details of the spill here and the resumption of construction on the on the SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project here.
The city will continue to keep the community informed as new information becomes available. For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, please visit www.sr179sewermainreplacement.
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Sedona AZ (August 20, 2020) – UPDATE – Thursday, August 20 – Water quality counts taken between 8:45 and 9:18 a.m. on August 19, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming.
It takes approximately 24 hours to receive test results, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 235 CFU/100 mL Beach Action Value (BAV) of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
Testing going forward
With E. coli levels consistently beneath the 235 CFU/100 mL limit, the city is now testing on Wednesdays to continue to better understand normal fluctuations of E. coli in the creek. The next test results will be available on Aug. 27, 2020. The city remains engaged with ADEQ, county health departments, and community partners like the Oak Creek Watershed Council to solicit input on performing any other testing or analysis. Also, the city will kick off a stakeholders meeting with representatives from these organizations and residents in early September to review all components of the incident and amend protocols that need to be updated.
Construction on project is back underway
The city approved an updated Operations Plan by contractor Kinney Construction Services that includes a detailed safety plan with assurances a sewer spill in Oak Creek won’t occur again, and construction on the SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project has resumed. The contractor expects the project will be completed by early October.
More information
Read more details of the spill here.
The city will continue to keep the community informed as new information becomes available. For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, please visit www.sr179sewermainreplacement.com. To contact a project team member with questions regarding this event, email news@sr179sewermainreplacement.com or call the Project Hotline at (928) 852-4164.
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UPDATE – Construction resumes on sewer project
Sedona AZ (August 15, 2020) – As of August 14, 2020, the city of Sedona approved an updated Operations Plan by contractor Kinney Construction Services that includes a detailed safety plan with assurances a sewer spill in Oak Creek won’t occur again marking the return to construction on the SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project.
Highlights of the updated Operations Plan include:
- Enhanced monitoring of the pumping system including a 24-7 watch of the system by the contractor and a satellite call box that will alert both the contractor and the city if the water level in the manhole reaches a specific level.
- A re-design of the floats that trigger the pumps to turn on so that they are more secure.
- A triple check of the site at the end of the work day by the superintendent, the foreman, and the independent, third-party inspector to ensure items are secure and sewer conveyance is clear.
Background
Sometime between 5 and 7:30 p.m. the night of August 4, 2020 a sewage spill of approximately 15,000 – 20,000 gallons of liquid effluent occurred along SR179 associated with the SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project.
Updated project timeline
The contractor will re-mobilize beginning August 17, 2020. The contractor now expects the project will completed by early October due to the stop work order issued after the spill and additional safety provisions included in the Operations Plan.
Testing going forward
With E. coli levels consistently beneath the 235 CFU/100 mL limit every day for over a week, the city is now testing on Wednesdays to continue to better understand normal fluctuations of E. coli in the creek. A report of E. coli counts will be shared with the community the following day. The city remains engaged with Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), county health departments, and community partners like the Oak Creek Watershed Council to solicit input on performing any other testing or analysis. Also, the city will kick off a stakeholders meeting with representatives from these organizations and residents in early September to review all components of the incident and amend protocols that need to be updated.
More information
Read more details of the spill here.
For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, please visit www.sr179sewermainreplacement.com. To contact a project team member with questions regarding this event, email news@sr179sewermainreplacement.com or call the Project Hotline at (928) 852-4164.
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Sedona AZ (August 13, 2020) – Tuesday, Aug. 12 update on sewage spill
Water quality counts taken between 8:13 and 9:05 a.m. on August 11, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming:
It takes approximately 24 hours to receive test results and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 235 CFU/100 mL Beach Action Value (BAV) of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
ADEQ’s perspective
According to Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), “the city took prompt action to stop the discharge, clean and disinfect the location where it occurred, conduct water quality sampling and testing in consultation with ADEQ and notify the public, businesses and homeowners with properties on the creek in the area downstream about the spill. Also in consultation with ADEQ, the city posted signage at the discharge area and nearby public access points, notified other community groups and issued news releases to keep the public informed,” said ADEQ Communications Administrator Caroline Oppleman.
“I’m glad to know from ADEQ’s perspective we took the right actions to respond to this incident. Nevertheless, we still the need to convene stakeholders, review the incident and improve protocols in the event something like this ever happens again,” said City Manager Justin Clifton.
Additionally, the sewage from the spill has long-since passed and it is unlikely that any spikes in E. coli results, like the one on Aug. 9, 2020 at Red Rock Crossing, are related to last week’s sewer spill. “ADEQ analyzed the Oak Creek flow velocity calculations from the U.S. Geological Service (USGS) gauge in Sedona and estimates that the sewage spill passed by Red Rock Crossing some time on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020,” said Oppleman.
Furthermore, ADEQ confirmed it is difficult to attribute how much E. coli is from a storm, a sewer spill, recreation or animal activity, and that high recreation in summer months and storm events result in higher E. coli levels: “In Oak Creek, about 15 percent of the water samples tested have E. coli levels higher than EPA’s conservative 235 CFU BAV. Historical water quality data indicate the median E. coli level at Red Rock Crossing is 40.4 CFU, well below the EPA BAV. However, at other times, E. coli has been measured at and higher than 300 CFUs, above the EPA BAV, in Oak Creek particularly during the summer high recreation months and following storm events,” said Oppleman.
Testing going forward
With E. coli levels consistently beneath the 235 CFU/100 mL limit for over a week, the city will move to weekly testing to continue to better understand normal fluctuations of E. coli in the creek. Community updates are expected to move to a weekly basis, with the next one planned for Aug. 20, 2020. The city remains engaged with ADEQ, county health departments and community partners like the Oak Creek Watershed Council to solicit input on performing any other testing or analysis. Also the city will kick off a stakeholders meeting with representatives from these organizations and residents in early September to review all components of the incident and amend protocols that need to be updated.
Construction expected to resume
Kinney Construction Services, the contractor for the SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project, submitted an updated Operations Plan that includes a detailed safety plan. Highlights from that plan include:
- Enhanced monitoring of the pumping system including a 24-7 watch of the system by the contractor and a satellite call box that will alert both the contractor and the city if the water level in the manhole reaches a specific level.
- A re-design of the floats that trigger the pumps to turn on so that they are more secure.
- A triple check of the site at the end of the work day by the superintendent, the foreman, and the independent, third-party inspector to ensure items are secure and sewer conveyance is clear.
Once the Operations Plan is approved by the city in the coming days, it is anticipated work on the project will resume early next week. “We’re taking every precaution before resuming work, which is contingent on an adequate safety plan in place that provides the city with assurances a spill like this won’t happen again,” said Director of Wastewater Roxanne Holland.
More information
Read more details of the spill here.
The city will continue to keep the community informed as new information becomes available. For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, please visit www.sr179sewermainreplacement.com. To contact a project team member with questions regarding this event, email news@sr179sewermainreplacement.com or call the Project Hotline at (928) 852-4164.
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Sedona AZ (August 11, 2020) – UPDATE – Water quality counts taken between 8:23 and 9:20 a.m. on August 10, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming:
Note that it takes approximately 24 hours to receive test results and the 235 CFU/100 mL of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
The city is investigating the variability of E. coli results, including any results higher than the 235 CFU/100 mL threshold. It is not clear if these elevated numbers are the result of increased recreational activity on weekends, standard variation in samples or if there is any relationship to last week’s spill. The city will continue testing and working with ADEQ and area stakeholders to better understand these trends.
More information
Read more details of the spill here and information on next steps here.
The city will continue to keep the community informed as new information becomes available. For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, please visit www.sr179sewermainreplacement.com. To contact a project team member with questions regarding this event, email news@sr179sewermainreplacement.com or call the Project Hotline at (928) 852-4164.
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Sedona AZ (August 10, 2020) – UPDATE – City identifies next steps in sewer spill
The city of Sedona will move forward with both short term and long term action items as part of the response to a sewage spill into Oak Creek on Aug. 4, 2020. Read More→
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Sedona AZ (August 9, 2020) – UPDATE – Water quality counts taken between 8:07 and 9:21 a.m. on August 8, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming:
The 235 CFU/100 mL of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
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Sedona AZ (August 8, 2020) – UPDATE – Water quality counts taken between 8:40 and 10:18 a.m. on August 7, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming:
The 235 CFU/100 mL of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
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Sedona AZ (August 7, 2020) – UPDATE – Water quality counts taken between 12:04 and 2:19 p.m. on August 6, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites continue to drop and remain below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming:
The 235 CFU/100 mL of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E. coli set to protect public health.
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Sedona AZ (August 7, 2020) – Initial water quality counts taken between 8:50 and 11:35 a.m. on August 5, 2020 show E.coli levels at all test sites below the state and federal water quality E.coli limit of 235 Colony Forming Units (CFU)/100mL of water for recreational swimming:
The 235 CFU/100 mL of water limit is a surface water quality standard specific to E.coli set to project public health.
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Sedona AZ (August 6, 2020) – Sometime between 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. the night of August 4, 2020 a sewage spill occurred along SR179 associated with the SR179 Sewer Main Replacement Project that is currently under construction. The spill was contained and disinfected around 8:30 p.m. that same evening. Kinney Construction Services, the contractor for the construction project, is responsible for this accidental spill. [179 Sewer Spill FAQs]
Untreated liquid effluent was reported coming out of a manhole in front of the Hillside Sedona Shopping Center and flowed into a storm drain which then drained into Oak Creek approximately 750 feet downstream from the SR179 bridge over Oak Creek. At this time, it is estimated that approximately 15,000 – 20,000 gallons of effluent spilled into the creek. For context, the volume of effluent translates to approximately 150 gallons per minute. For comparison, Oak Creek’s rate of flow is 13,000 gallons per minute.
The immediately affected areas of the creek have been cordoned off with yellow caution tape. The city and Kinney Construction Services have commenced water quality tests both upstream and downstream of the spill area. Soil tests will be taken in the spill vicinity. We expect to receive test results in approximately 24 hours that will be sent to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ). The city will continue working closely with ADEQ to develop additional steps that may be needed to remediate the spill. Kinney Construction Services is hand-delivering information on this spill to residents and business with direct creek access located downstream from the spill. Other public notices have been placed at trailheads and areas where people frequently access Oak Creek.
As a result of this incident, work has been temporarily suspended as the contractor develops a plan to ensure that a spill does not occur again and to safely continue moving forward with the utility installation project. The contractor will continue to make every attempt to complete work along SR179 as soon as possible.
More information
Water quality tests will continue to be taken daily and the city will work with ADEQ to develop additional steps to remediate the spill. It takes approximately 24 hours to receive test results.
The city will continue to keep the community informed as new information becomes available. For project information, including an FAQ on this incident, please visit www.sr179sewermainreplacement.com. To contact a project team member with questions regarding this event, email news@sr179sewermainreplacement.com or call the Project Hotline at (928) 852-4164.
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4 Comments
Perhaps the City of Sedona can help the businesses in some fashion since the project will be three months at least past due expected completion date. It’s devastating impact is now moving into Sedona’s 2nd big season for successful commerce.
I was pleased to see how they cleaned up the construction site- tractors lined up as a proud farmer while not in use, obstacles were moved so ingress, egress safer, and a large crew at work on the project. I’m grateful for the improvement.
There is absolutely no excuse for this – how long had this problem been going on before it was discovered, and why did they wait so long before reporting it?
The person who was doing the water testing did not do an adequate job – witnesses say the water should have been taken near the bottom of the creek, but water was just barely skimmed at the top.
I know someone who lives on the creek near Red Rock Crossing and they test the water independently since their dogs got sick from swimming in it 4 years ago – and when it was reported “safe,” it was far far from being safe.
The city needs to sue this company for their irresponsibility and failure to address the issue immediately.
I just drove by Kinney Construction’s work site/dump site today, August 25th. to see fresh raw sewage flowing into Oak Creek at the same spot they dumped 20,000 gallons of raw sewage into Oak Creek on August 7th. There have been no fish since August 8th due to the fact that KINNEY CONSTRUCTION SERVICES KILLED OAK CREEK! I was born in Sedona and love this land beyond description and it is truly heartbreaking to see the Oak Creek ecosystem destroyed. Why did the mayor give no public announcement for over 24 hours after this environmental catastrophe happened? If it is true that the mayor is guilty of dereliction of duty to inform the public of this health crisis, we the people of Sedona will see that the mayor steps down and/or face criminal charges for her inaction if applicable. CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT? I’M IN! Let’s sue Kinney Construction BANKRUPT!!!!!!!!!