Six months after 5.5 million gallons of wastewater poured into the Russian River at Guerneville — the biggest spill on the river in more than 40 years — no fine has landed, and the threatened lawsuit hasn’t been filed. The beaches at Monte Rio and Johnson’s are open this holiday weekend. The accountability is still in the mail.
What happened in January
The spill began Tuesday, Jan. 6, as a storm system soaked the North Bay. The treatment plant’s holding ponds overflowed, and wastewater traveled about a quarter-mile through a wooded corridor to the river, the Press Democrat reported at the time. The plant, on Neeley Road outside Guerneville, serves roughly 3,200 customers from Rio Nido down to Vacation Beach.
State regulators in Santa Rosa said at the time they would determine whether enforcement action — including a fine — was warranted. No enforcement decision has been announced. The Regional Water Board’s public list of tentative orders, where a proposed penalty or settlement would first surface, showed nothing for the sanitation district as of Saturday.
The lawsuit that hasn’t landed
California River Watch, represented by longtime North Bay water-quality attorney Jack Silver, sent its formal notice of intent to sue March 18, naming Sonoma Water and the sanitation district. The notice alleged the district failed to maintain aging infrastructure, failed to make timely repairs and was slow to post public health warnings. It proposed eight remedial measures, from a full system review to stronger public notification rules.
Under the Clean Water Act, that notice started a 60-day clock — time for the agency to respond before a suit can be filed. The clock ran out around May 17. Seven weeks later, a search of federal court records turns up no case.
That is not necessarily the end of it. River Watch notices have ended in negotiated settlements with North Bay cities before, and the group has been down this road with the district itself — it sued over spills between 2010 and 2015, cases that were ultimately dismissed. David Weinsoff, a staff attorney at California River Watch, told the Gazette this spring that aging sewage infrastructure is “a big problem statewide.”
A $47 million fix, and a grant chase to pay for it
Sonoma Water is pursuing a $47 million grant for the Guerneville plant — force main replacement, lift station rehabilitation and broader upgrades. Only smaller projects, including an ultraviolet disinfection system, have been completed in recent years. District staff walked river residents through the infrastructure plans at a May 7 presentation in Guerneville.
Households on the sanitation district’s system already pay some of the highest sewer rates in Sonoma County, and any settlement or court-ordered overhaul would add pressure.
Meanwhile, the river is open
Sonoma County’s June 29 beach sampling found bacteria within state standards at all 10 monitored river beaches, Monte Rio and Johnson’s Beach included. The county samples weekly from Memorial Day to Labor Day; results are posted on the Department of Health Services website and the beach hotline, 707-565-6552.
So the water is fine, for now, by the numbers. What January proved is how fast that can change when a 43-year-old plant meets a wet week — and six months on, the two processes built to force a fix are both still winding up.
FAQ
Is it safe to swim in the Russian River right now?
County sampling on June 29 found all 10 monitored river beaches within state bacteria standards. Check current results through the county Department of Health Services or the beach hotline at 707-565-6552.
Who runs the Guerneville sewage plant?
The Russian River County Sanitation District, operated by Sonoma Water. It serves about 3,200 customers between Rio Nido and Vacation Beach.
Will anyone be penalized for the January spill?
Undecided. The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board has announced no enforcement decision, and California River Watch’s threatened Clean Water Act lawsuit had not been filed in federal court as of Saturday.