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PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A $31 million system designed to collect runoff from de-icing fluid sprayed on planes at Portland International Airport in winter is causing problems for fish.
The collection system, which the Port of Portland began using in November 2003, has worked fine. But officials say it was based on two faulty assumptions that have led to dozens of water-quality violations, an $82,500 state fine and an agreement signed this month that the Port will build a new treatment and discharge system by 2012.
Discharges containing the de-icing fluid — variations of glycol, similar to antifreeze — are harmful to fish and other aquatic life. Bacteria break down the fluid, robbing fish of oxygen in the Columbia Slough, where the water is emptied.
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