Aug. 6, 2000
Here's a distasteful subject: Human waste in Lake Powell. It's been a growing problem.
In recent years, government agencies have tried to crack down on sewage dumping in the lake.
But some of the wealthier visitors may be getting away with it.
So tougher rules are coming, as Environment Specialist John Hollenhorst reports.
When Steve Luckesen, goes on patrol, one thing makes him very angry-- people who dump sewage overboard.
STEVE LUCKESEN/LAKE POWELL BOATING OFFICER: "MY JOB IS TO PROTECT THIS LAKE. AND YOU KNOW, ANYBODY THAT WOULD ABUSE IT IS GOING TO HAVE A PROBLEM WITH ME."
Most boat owners say they'd never dump sewage.
JIM DAVIS, BOAT OWNER: "OHHHH. I WOULDN'T WANT ANYBODY TO DO THAT. YUCK! HAH, HAH."
But Luckesen believes a lot of fancy boats get away with it.
Most boats have toilets that flush into a holding tank.
Boat owners pump them out at a shore facility.
But some boats are equipped for the high-seas with expensive marine toilets that treat the waste and dump it into the water.
STEVE LUCKESEN/LAKE POWELL BOATING OFFICER: "THESE BOATS CAN DISCHARGE THEIR HOLDING TANKS IN LESS THAN ONE MINUTE, AT FULL SPEED."
Try to imagine swimming in it, even if it's chemically treated.
JOHN RITENOUR/NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: "IT'S INCREDIBLY OFFENSIVE BECAUSE IT'S THERE. IT'S NOT AN ODOR PROBLEM, YOU CAN'T SMELL IT. IT'S JUST IN THE WATER ALL AROUND YOU. AND YOU CAN'T AVOID IT."
Enforcement has been difficult and uneven because there's a crazy quilt of sometimes contradictory regulations from numerous state and federal agencies. The Coast Guard allows dischargeable toilets, the Park service doesn't. No wonder boat owners are confused.
STEVE LUCKESEN/LAKE POWELL BOATING OFFICER: "THEY DON'T REALIZE THAT HAVING A BOAT WITH THIS KIND OF CAPABILITY IS ACTUALLY ILLEGAL."
JOHN HOLLENHORST: "WELL, THE CONFUSION IS ABOUT TO CLEAR UP, AND MAYBE THE WATER QUALITY ALONG WITH IT. THE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES HAVE GOTTEN THEIR ACT TOGETHER AND SIGNED AN AGREEMENT. AS OF SEPTEMBER FIRST, LAKE POWELL IS OFFICIALLY A 'NO DISCHARGE' BODY OF WATER."
JOHN RITENOUR/NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: "NO HUMAN WASTE CAN BE TREATED AND DUMPED OVERBOARD."
Park rules currently require discharge tubes to be sealed. In the future, those with functioning discharge systems may be ordered to take their boat and go home.
Certain beaches and side canyons at Lake Powell have been closed at times because of bacterial contamination.
But officials say most of the lake has good water quality most of the time.
