The county has agreed to further tests for bacteria in the creek, where sewage spilled in July. Residents wonder why it took so long.
By LORRI HELFAND
Published February 26, 2004
[Times photo: Kathleen Flynn]
Jaime Prawl shows a scoop of what he finds in the water behind his home on Brookside Drive. "It wasn't like this three years ago," Prawl said. Prawl and a neighbor have asked the county to retest the water in McKay Creek, where sewage spilled last summer. The $30,600 testing project is set to start at the beginning of March.
LARGO - The sewage spill occurred seven months ago, but Jaime Prawl and his neighbor, Louis Horton, think remnants of the leak still linger in McKay Creek, which flows behind their homes.
Three months after Pinellas County sent out notices saying it was safe to swim and fish in the creek, Prawl and Horton asked the county for more thorough tests.
A little more than a week ago, the county gave its approval for more tests.
"That's good," Prawl said. "That's a step forward."
But both men were frustrated with how long it took to get to this point.
So were several of their neighbors, including John Arnt, who says the spill happened just feet from his property.
"To me that's ridiculous, if it takes that long to get it tested," Arnt said.
The county will fund the $30,600 testing project, which will be conducted by Valerie J. Harwood, a professor at the University of South Florida. She plans to begin her research on the creek at the beginning of March.
Harwood said her team will sample water and sediment from 10 sites in the creek, testing for the same type of bacteria that the county tested for previously. But tests will also be conducted for other bacteria that signify long-term contamination and other pathogens that can cause symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhea and, in some cases, meningitis.
Such specific research is gaining popularity but is expensive, Harwood said.
The contract for the tests was signed by County Administrator Stephen M. Spratt on Feb. 16. The Pinellas County Health Department and the researcher were informed about the approval Wednesday, said Barbara Kuhl, Pinellas County director of contracts management and business support.
"A week later. That's kind of slow, isn't it?" Horton said.
Kuhl said the approval process can be time consuming. Her office prepared a document outlining 18 steps in the approval process, including revisions, contract reviews by the city attorney, questions for the researcher and approval by the Division of Research Grants at the University of South Florida.
The sewage spill occurred in July, when the 16-inch sewer main leaked into the creek. The utilities department tested the water and told residents it was safe to return to recreational activities a few days later. However, the health department later said swimming in the water was not a good idea.
Prawl and Horton complained that the water was still stinky and mucky. Prawl paid for his own tests and the county tested the creek again; bacteria levels were two to 10 times higher than state standards.
At the time, county and state environmental specialists said other causes, such as stormwater runoff, may have caused the spike.
But the county agreed to have more specific tests done after meeting with Prawl and Horton in October.
Prawl said he's still "90 percent" sure Harwood's research will reveal contamination.
Horton said he just hopes the county will clean the creak. "I'm not a tree hugger and I'm not a big environmentalist, but the waterways we live on, we should take care of," Horton said.
Pick Talley, county director of utilities, said the county will take responsibility if test results link microorganisms in the creek to the leak.
"If (the bacteria's) human, and it could be related to the sewage spill, then we would have it dredged out," Talley said.
