Grants Pass Water Treatment plant hits capacity, discharges sewage into Rogue River

GRANTS PASS, Ore. – Heavy rain is causing large inflows at the Grants Pass Wastewater Treatment Plant. They’re dealing with so much water, the plant has reached capacity and is dumping untreated, excess sewage into the Rogue River.

Plant managers told NBC5 News they’ve used this method before when they’re over capacity, typically during heavy spring rainstorms.

For the last few days, plant discharge has been kept at a nominal level. Over the last 24 hours, however, discharge shot to over 20,000 cubic-feet-per-second. The maximum outflow of treated water is 3,000 cubic-feet-per-second.

According to plant managers, the relatively small amount of sewage released is diluted in the large amount of water presently flowing through the rising river. However, it’s still a good idea to avoid the water for the near future.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has been notified.