Solutions

Alternatives for water treatment

There are viable, cost-effective alternatives to the Bull Run Water Filtration Plant, including but not limited to:

• UV treatment, which is effective against Cryptosporidium (the primary focus of the new plant) and costs only hundreds of thousands of dollars, rather than billions,
• Locating the plant closer to water recipients (rather than blasting several miles of farmland for the pipeline), and/or
• Resuming water testing for Cryptosporidium (which Portland Water Bureau isn’t doing now).

Improvements to public process

Good processes have a higher likelihood of producing good outcomes. We suggest that the City of Portland implement the following changes, going forward:

• An anti-displacement audit of this project, with a focus on the impacts that this will have on Portland Water Bureau ratepayers;
• Independent oversight for this project (and others, going forward);
• An audit of current total expenses, impacts to local communities and water ratepayers, and projected costs;
• More transparent rate setting with opportunities for public involvement; and
• Substantive responses to concerns raised by ratepayers and other impacted parties.