NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- After months of back and forth between the City of North Las Vegas and Clark County, a controversial wastewater treatment facility is up and running.
The two sides have been working on a deal to allow the city to discharge treated water into a county flood channel. But after a heated meeting on Tuesday, the city decided enough is enough and began pumping without permission.
Commissioners delayed North Las Vegas' request to use the county's Sloan Channel to carry treated water to Lake Mead. Rather than wait for a political compromise, Thursday morning the water started flowing.
"We've pushed it back -- pushed it back as long as we can -- now we need to continue working with the county but it needs to flow," said North Las Vegas City Councilwoman Anita Wood.
Just one day after a heated commission meeting where accusations flew, tempers flared and commissioners again delayed a decision on the city's request, North Las Vegas put the county on written notice it planned to begin discharging immediately.
"For that document to be delivered to us last night, over 50 pages, they knew before they came to the commission meeting what they were going to do. That is not working with us in good faith," said County Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani.
For months, the two sides have fought over the city's plan to flush 25 million gallons of effluent per day into the channel. Without it, the treated water has no place to go and the $300 million facility doesn't get used.
The city insists the commission already approved its use, both in 2005 and in 2009. But Clark County argues those votes involved regional plans without clear specifics about the North Las Vegas facility.
"They are arguing that they don't need a permit. You absolutely need a permit from the county to discharge so they're violating the law," said Giunchigliani.
Giunchigliani, whose constituents live along the channel, also raises public health concerns with respect to its use. Though the effluent is treated to near drinking water standards, local children, she argues, frequently ride their bikes and skateboards along the concrete.
The city denies any health risks, calling the issue a "red-herring," and another excuse to reject their request.
"You have some commissioners going back on slights that North Las Vegas supposedly made that were done 40 years ago. I don't know how you get over that. Another commissioner who says we never should have built it, but we did and I have to deal with the reality of today," said Councilwoman Wood.
Wood says continued delays also threaten sensitive equipment within the plant that are not designed to sit idle for long periods of time. The flow at this point is gradual and will increase in the next 30 days as the facility reaches capacity, unless a judge doesn't stop it first.
Late Thursday, word came that the county plans to file an injunction sooner, rather than later, to stop the flow.
Source: http://www.8newsnow.com/story/14878528/county7-plans-to-take-legal-action-against-nlv
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