How to resolve AdBlock issue? LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — County officials on Thursday said their response to the massive Clearlake sewage spill “fully aligned” with protocols as residents remain under public health advisory to relocate and avoid using water from their wells.
The county’s daily update — comprising contributions from Environmental Health, Special Districts and the Public Health officer — offered few concrete details on new developments, claims of protocol alignment, as well as "encouraging" lab results on sanitized wells.
This multi-department response work has been prompted by a three-million-gallon sewage spill that began on Sunday, Jan. 11, caused by the rupture of a 16-inch force main operated by Lake County Sanitation District, which is overseen by Lake County Special Districts.
The spill was reportedly stopped at 9:55 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 12, according to county officials.
As of the county’s Thursday update, the affected area remained at 297 acres.
Work to sanitize, test and retest wells, along with cleanup and remediation efforts remain actively underway, according to the update. However, it did not provide any aggregated data on well sanitization or testing progress, nor on test results.
In the meantime, all public health guidance for the impacted area remains in effect, including temporary relocation; avoiding use of water from private wells until they are tested safe; and the recommendation of a minimum of 60 gallons of portable water per person per day for drinking, food preparation, cleaning and laundry.
Public Health Officer Dr. Robert Bernstein also advised residents who develop symptoms including diarrhea, vomiting, stomach cramps, fever or flu-like symptoms, skin rashes or infections, and eye, ear or wound infections to seek medical care.
“Out of an abundance of caution,” the county update warned, residents in the immediately affected area are advised not to consume free-range eggs or livestock for 30 days, effective from Jan. 11.
The county said that clean hay has been provided to livestock to reduce potential exposure to the sewage.
The next town hall-style informational event regarding the spill is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 6 p.m. at Clearlake City Hall.
County officials: response actions ‘fully aligned’ with protocol and ‘encouraging’ lab results
The Environmental Health section of the update stated there have been “ongoing discussions with the State Water Resources Control Board” and that those discussions “have confirmed that response actions taken to date are fully aligned with established protocols.”
The update did not specify the nature of those discussions, or which departments participated in the discussion. Nor did it identify who confirmed the claim of full alignment.
Furthermore, it said "regulators have expressed confidence in the steps implemented so far and have commended the coordinated team effort.”
“Work is continuing to establish clear guidance for when it will be safe to resume normal water use and lift existing Do Not Use notices,” said the update, which means water in the affected area remains unsafe to use for now.
The update also stated that a “defined standard” has been established to guide future steps and estimate timelines, though it did not detail the specific metrics of that standard.
It also described recent laboratory results as “encouraging,” noting that initial post-sanitization samples from “several wells” showed non-detect results.
At Wednesday’s town hall meeting, Environmental Health Director Craig Wetherbee said that of the 94 wells tested, 39 were found to be contaminated with E. coli and coliform. Of those, four returned levels so “astronomically high” they were outside of the scope of the test.
Beginning this weekend, Wetherbee said drillers and pump teams were in the spill area, shocking — or treating — 51 wells.
The county’s Thursday update did not specify how many wells, out of the total tested and sanitized, produced the “encouraging” non-detect results.
The update noted these initial "non-detect" findings are not a green light for residents. Officials stated that additional samples must be collected after "flushing the systems to confirm consistency" before discussions can begin about restoring well use.
Rainfall cited as potential factor
The county update also introduced a caveat regarding the reliability of future testing, warning that environmental factors such as rainfall “are also being carefully considered.”
It said that significant rain events producing runoff “can affect aquifer conditions and may appear in testing results.”
“Importantly, the presence of contaminants following such events does not necessarily indicate a connection to the recent incident,” the update stated.
Officials noted that clarifying guidance from the State Water Board on this distinction — determining whether contamination is from the massive spill or normal runoff — is being documented.
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