Columbia Generating Station - permits and compliance

The National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit authorizes the Columbia Generating Station (CGS) to discharge wastewater meeting established water quality standards to the Columbia River. 

On May 30, 2023, we issued the sixth NPDES permit for CGS which expires June 30, 2028. The first NPDES permit was issued in an amendment to the Site Certification Agreement (SCA) on September 25, 1975.

Beginning on September 9, 1990, we issued the NPDES permit separate from the SCA followed by subsequent NPDES permits issued on April 9, 2001, May 25, 2006, and September 30, 2014. We administratively extended the fifth NPDES permit on September 13, 2019, in which the terms and conditions of the 2014 NPDES permit remained in effect and enforceable until the effective date of the May 2023 NPDES.

Our Council approved and issued Resolution 300 on September 10, 2001, which covered the operation and monitoring of the Sanitary Waste Treatment Facility (SWTF) that serves both CGS and the Washington Nuclear Power Projects 1 and 4 (WNP-1/4). We issued a notice of Temporary State Waste Discharge (SWDP) Permit on July 15, 2021 for the SWTF. Our SWDP permit is effective for up to five years, until July 15, 2026.

We also sample and monitor air, terrestrial, cooling water, river water, and groundwater in the radiological environmental monitoring program as described in the SCA. Our monitoring is done within a 10-mile radius of CGS on a continuous, weekly, monthly, quarterly, semiannually, and annually schedule depending on the sampling requirements. Monitoring includes farm products, such as dairy, livestock, vegetables, alfalfa, hay, and eggs as well as rooted aquatic plants and fish in the Columbia River.

Our Council issued Resolution 300 authorizing operational and monitoring requirements for the Sanitary Wastewater Treatment Facility (SWTF) on September 10, 2001 to discharge domestic wastewater to groundwater by land treatment application. This authorization was followed by issuance of a notice of Temporary State Waste Discharge permit on July 15, 2021. Ongoing compliance includes wastewater, sludge and groundwater monitoring by the facility.

Beginning on September 9, 1990, we issued the first NPDES permit separate from the Site Certification Agreement followed by subsequent NPDES permits issued in 2001, 2006, 2014, and 2023. Ongoing wastewater compliance includes continuous, monthly, and annual monitoring to comply with the Federal Clean Water Act and Washington water quality criteria for surface waters including specific requirements for the Columbia River.

We require the site restoration plan (SRP) to have enough details to identify, evaluate, and resolve all major environmental, public health, and safety issues. The plan should describe the evaluation process used to develop the options and measures that will be taken to restore or preserve the site, including protection of the public against risks or danger resulting from the Columbia Generating Station.

In addition, we require the SRP to address economic factors regarding the costs and benefits of the restoration options compared to the relative risk to the public. The SRP should also address funding provisions to meet the site restoration and/or management costs, including pollution liability insurance. We also require the SRP to outline the scope for monitoring during site restoration and/or preservation, including future monitoring to verify site restoration is completed.