Sewage spill got played down, Durham report gave low volume
Michael Biesecker, Staff Writer, N&O Sep 23, 2006 08:00 AM -excerpts-
Earlier this month, state environmental officials fined the city $33,431 after an investigation determined that the 21-inch-diameter sewer line failed because of corrosion that should have been detected during required annual inspections. City records indicate it had not been inspected for nearly two years before the spill.
The ruptured line in a remote area on the city's north side spewed undetected for 17 days -- issuing 8 million gallons of sewage into nearby wetlands, a beaver pond and a small creek leading to the Eno. That amount of sewage would fill about 1,000 of the tractor-trailer tanker trucks commonly used to deliver gasoline to service stations. -jump-
Pullman said the city's reporting about the May spill makes her question the truthfulness of other information provided by the city.*
"It is appalling that number was reported," she said, referring to the 1,000 gallons. "That report was a feel-good document. More PR than anything else."
http://www.newsobserver.com/145/story/489783.html
* Lead contaminated drinking water; burning, smoldering dumps; and now massive sewage spills. Further evidence the Bull City is being transformed into a toxic waste cesspool, worthy of a third-world nation.
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2006
Troops on the Field
[snip]
We will be patient, yes, but we will NOT give up. We must "work." There is SOMETHING very much in our power to achieve in this case: the defeat of Michael Nifong in the District Attorney's race. I am no political writer, but I will say this over and over till November. THIS is something we can make happen. Beth Brewer of RN-VC has the troops on the field. More voters signed Lewis Cheek's petition than voted for Nifong. This is one evil we can grab by the throat and throw into obscurity. It just takes each of us doing whatever we possibly can. Write, post, rabble-rouse... sign up new voters, drive to the polls. Put up a campaign sign, give what you can, All those of you who care, who are seething with outrage...PLEASE...get involved. Seldom in these frustrations in our lives, does life hand us a road map to satisfaction; to a possible resolution. This is one of those moments. I'm dreaming of a phone call for Nifong this November, the very one he most dreads: "Mike...YOU LOST." Are you dreaming of that too?
Let's make it happen. I can almost hear Nifong's phone ringing now.