Spokane County considering new fees to address PFAS contamination in West Plains

(The Center Square) - Fresh off another victory, Spokane County may ask voters to approve new fees next summer to supply clean drinking water to the West Plains after nearly a decade of contamination.

Much of the region voted earlier this month to renew a longstanding measure designed to protect the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer. Now, local officials are considering whether another aquifer protection area could aid ongoing efforts to clean up hundreds of private wells across the West Plains.

State law allows local officials to prop up APAs with fees that fund efforts to monitor water quality and infrastructure projects. Spokane established one in 1985, which voters renewed in 2004 and again this month. With a 74% approval rate, county officials hope the same will hold for West Plains voters.

“PFAS issues on the West Plains are such a dominant part of the conversation,” Public Works Director Kyle Twohig told the Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday, “and they really have a lot of other things related to their aquifers that they want a program like this about that isn’t just ... about PFAS.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sampled more than 400 wells across the West Plains last year, with 57% testing positive for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances above what’s considered safe.

Experts sometimes refer to PFAS as “forever chemicals.” The West Plains first learned about the issue there in 2017. The nearby airport and military base trained with firefighting foam containing PFAS for years, much like others across the country, but efforts to address the contamination have lagged.

Commissioner Al French has led efforts to address the crisis since the West Plains are his constituents.

Last year, he proposed establishing a task force dedicated to cleanup efforts, but not much has come of it yet. In April, French announced that the state had allocated $7.5 million toward installing special filters on those with the worst contamination levels after requesting $18.5 million for the entire area.

On Tuesday, the commissioners floated the idea of putting another APA on the August 2026 ballot to raise more revenue toward those efforts. The three cities already engaging in dialogue include Airway Heights, Medical Lake and Cheney, but the nearby Fairchild Air Force Base could also fall in the APA.

“I could see a path where the task force becomes something as an extension of this program,” French said. “[Those involved] are working to try and put the first task force meeting together for next week.”

If approved, the West Plains APA would include roughly 18,600 parcels, each charged $15 annually for pulling water from the aquifer and an additional $15 annually if the property relies on a septic system.

According to Tuesday’s agenda, the recent renewal of the county’s other APA is expected to raise $2.3 million for the county and cities to spend on monitoring, infrastructure, education and other projects.

A West Plains APA likely wouldn’t raise as much, but it could support efforts to address contamination.

Another APA wouldn’t eliminate the crisis outright, but if voters want help, their wallets may take a hit.

“We generate a lot of stormwater because of large surface areas that are paved and all that kind of stuff, whether it’s the airport or Amazon,” French said. “I’d like to be able to capture that water runoff, process it and recharge the aquifer with it, because one of the challenges they have is, how do you?”