The City of Eugene Public Works Wastewater team will be monitoring for compliance with the University’s wastewater discharge permit by conducting composite and grab sampling of the sanitary system during the remaining fall academic calendar. Since the university has greatly reduced on campus activities, normal sanitary system discharge volume is also at a minimum. Please ensure any hazardous wastes are routed through EHS Hazardous Waste disposal process and not illicitly discarded into laboratory sinks or other drains. A small quantity of a discarded waste in a sink, especially low or high pH materials, can have a magnified impact due to the low flow scenario, possibly resulting in a violation of allowed discharge limits. Drain disposal of any material with a pH less than 5.5 or greater than 12.0 is expressly disallowed.
Violations of allowed discharge limits can incur financial penalties, divert resources into investigation and follow-up, and negatively impact the university’s stewardship of the natural environment. Please do your part by keeping our sanitary wastewater system safe from illicit or accidental discharges. Please reach out to the contacts listed at https://safety.uoregon.edu/environmental-monitoring with any questions.
