County updates Belfair Water Reclamation work plan; pond repair could cost up to $1 million

County staff briefed commissioners on Dec. 8 about progress at the Belfair Water Reclamation Facility and options to address defects in the facility's reclamation pond.

A presenter said nearly all Ecology-identified action items had been completed except full operational redundancy, which staff expect to achieve soon once a needed electrical bid is secured. Staff said they reviewed the original geotechnical report (prepared by CH2M Hill) with on-call geotechnical engineers and contacted Jacobs, which acquired CH2M Hill, to discuss the pond defects and potential fixes.

On cost and schedule, staff said the work could be staged but noted an order-of-magnitude repair estimate of up to $1,000,000 based on current understanding and stressed that the schedule will depend on the technical fix and available funding. Staff proposed presenting a long-range target date to Ecology during a later meeting but the transcript contains inconsistent date formatting (a target date is transcribed as "10/01/1929" and elsewhere as "10/29"). The presenter said staff will explore grant and loan opportunities with Ecology, Commerce and other funding sources and recommended staging work and pursuing grants for portions if Ecology pushes back on funding uses.

Staff also recognized operator monitoring and reporting work led by a new operator (Trevor Hipwell) and said Lindsay Beam's resignation means two operator positions will be advertised; permit rules require a Group 3 operator on site and staff described temporary coverage options until recruitment is complete.

Commissioners asked staff to continue scoping alternatives, confirm permitted uses of REET/O9 and TST funds, and return with more detailed cost and funding breakdowns before any final commitments.