FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 10, 2005

WASTEWATER SPILLS INTO NUUPIA POND

            A Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) power outage, together with high winds and rains, disrupted power at the Kailua Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) early this morning (January 9), resulting in approximately 600,000 gallons of partially treated secondary wastewater effluent to overflow onto treatment plant grounds and spill into the Kaneohe Marine Corp Base Hawaii Naval Reservation’s Nuupia Pond.

            HECO power was unavailable from 12 midnight to 5:30 a.m., January 9.  A malfunction to the facility’s emergency power generation system resulted in the wastewater spillage condition to occur from 1:30 a.m. to 4:00 a.m.  The spillage of partially treated secondary effluent did not undergo ultraviolet disinfection.

            The Kailua WWTP is located at 95 Kaneohe Bay Drive.  Pollution warning signs will be posted, and sampling will be done of  receiving waters affected by the discharge.  The State Department of Health has been notified of the incident.

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