Other: On May 4th, 2022 I was taking a walk through the park when I noticed a chemical-type smell lingering near the stream that flows east to west through the middle of the park. When I went to investigate the source of the smell, I was alarmed by an opaque milky white substance contaminating the flowing stream. It also seemed to be the source of the smell. I followed the contamination upstream and traced it to a white PVC pipe that appears to originate from the Bryan Park pool facility. There was also particulate settling in the water where the pipe drains into the stream. Immediately after that I walked to the pool facility and confirmed with two city workers that the pool does indeed drain directly into the park's stream. They also told me that they were directed to power-wash the pool area and the resulting material was discharging directly into the stream via the PVC drainage pipe. Further, other city workers have confirmed with me that the pool water itself gets drained into the stream annually. I am not sure if this is legal - and if it is legal, it is certainly not environmentally sound. The material that is draining into the stream is very likely environmentally harmful.
I responded to Mr. Armstrong and let him know Parks has made changes to keep this discharge out of the stream.
Mr. Armstrong, You are correct. The City Parks Department is not allowed to discharge chlorinated water to a stream. The Utility has looked into and worked with Parks on eliminating this discharge. I believe Linda Thompson with P&T reached out to you. Parks has installed a system to divert chlorinated water to the sanitary system. We allow "pools" to discharge to stormwater if they have allowed significate time for the chlorine to dissipate. The Parks department test their water for chlorine before they discharge in the stormwater. Thank you for reaching out. If you need anything else please let me know. We have made an illicit discharge report on our Annual report for each of these incidents.
Mr. Armstrong, You are correct. The City Parks Department is not allowed to discharge chlorinated water to a stream. The Utility has looked into and worked with Parks on eliminating this discharge. I believe Linda Thompson with P&T reached out to you. Parks has installed a system to divert chlorinated water to the sanitary system. We allow "pools" to discharge to stormwater if they have allowed significate time for the chlorine to dissipate. The Parks department test their water for chlorine before they discharge in the stormwater. Thank you for reaching out. If you need anything else please let me know. We have made an illicit discharge report on our Annual report for each of these incidents.
Mr. Armstrong, You are correct. The City Parks Department is not allowed to discharge chlorinated water to a stream. The Utility has looked into and worked with Parks on eliminating this discharge. I believe Linda Thompson with P&T reached out to you. Parks has installed a system to divert chlorinated water to the sanitary system. We allow "pools" to discharge to stormwater if they have allowed significate time for the chlorine to dissipate. The Parks department test their water for chlorine before they discharge in the stormwater. Thank you for reaching out. If you need anything else please let me know. We have made an illicit discharge report on our Annual report for each of these incidents.
Mr. Armstrong, You are correct. The City Parks Department is not allowed to discharge chlorinated water to a stream. The Utility has looked into and worked with Parks on eliminating this discharge. I believe Linda Thompson with P&T reached out to you. Parks has installed a system to divert chlorinated water to the sanitary system. We allow "pools" to discharge to stormwater if they have allowed significate time for the chlorine to dissipate. The Parks department test their water for chlorine before they discharge in the stormwater. Thank you for reaching out. If you need anything else please let me know. We have made an illicit discharge report on our Annual report for each of these incidents.
Thanks for taking care of this.
| City | Bloomington |
|---|---|
| State | IN |
| Zip | 47401 |
| Latitude | 39.155139923096 |
| Longitude | -86.523307800293 |
| Neighborhood Association | Bryan Park |
| Township | Perry |
