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Learn some of the many ways EWEB customers support local schools and help inspire kids to explore the wonders of watershed health and clean energy resources.
Find Out MoreNational Infrastructure Week (May 14-20) may be a politically charged quip on the national stage, but for EWEB, the urgency and importance of infrastructure is no joke.
Find Out MoreMillions of dollars of investment have prevented the major harm from the Holiday Farm Fire, EWEB’s annual State of the Watershed Report finds.
Find Out MoreEWEB employs multiple methods of safeguarding drinking water, from the source to the tap.
Find Out MoreOld reservoir leaks, threatening water quality, and will fail when a major earthquake strikes.
Find Out MoreEWEB customers use more than twice as much water in the hot, dry summer months, compared to the cold, rainy winter months. The higher summer water use can almost assuredly be attributed to customers watering their lawns and gardens.
Find Out MoreThe Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) is expanding its capacity to provide water to customers in case of an emergency.
Find Out MoreEWEB is already in compliance with a new proposed federal rule that would require municipalities to test for PFAs, or forever chemicals, in drinking water. The good news for EWEB customers is that in over ten years of testing we have not found PFAs in our water.
Find Out MoreEugene is one of the largest cities on the west coast with only a single source of drinking water, the McKenzie River. And though the McKenzie is a pure, reliable water source, EWEB will secure a second source ensure resiliency in the future, planning to build a water treatment plant on the Willamette River, upstream of Eugene and Springfield.
Find Out MoreEWEB is building two 7.5-million-gallon water storage tanks on a 10-acre property at East 40th and Patterson Street in South Eugene. The tanks are part of our work to improve EWEB’s water storage infrastructure for future resiliency to earthquakes and climate change. People who live nearby have been watching the progress of the work since summer 2021.
Find Out MoreGrantees in the McKenzie River Valley can receive up to $35,000 each
Find Out MoreEugene has some of the best drinking water in the world. That’s thanks to our source, the pristine McKenzie River. It’s also thanks to the people at EWEB; whether an engineer designing a new reservoir, a treatment plant operator ensuring the safety and quality of drinking water, or a member of a crew maintaining the infrastructure in our community, water professionals work around the clock to ensure tap water is there when you need it.
Find Out MoreAn EWEB-supported program provides firewood for people affected by the 2020 Holiday Farm Fire. The McKenzie Firewood program was developed by Pure Water Partners (PWP) in 2021.
Find Out MoreAt EWEB, we do what we can to help others in need. That’s been the reality for several of our electric and water crews over the past few weeks as we’ve responded to mutual aid requests for storm response and drinking water restoration, locally, and out of state.
Find Out MoreEWEB has 800 miles of transmission and distribution lines transporting your drinking water underground throughout the city. It eventually comes out of your tap as delicious thirst-quenching water. But what goes into maintaining all those pipes? And what happens when one gets a leak? We went to find out.
Find Out MoreOctober 13, 2022
EWEB conducted a multi-agency spill drill on the Willamette River this week. The practice session was to help refresh and hone skills that will be essential to respond to an actual disaster involving an oil spill in the Willamette.
Emergency responders gathered at Whitely Landing in North Eugene on a sunny morning.
“Alright, hey, my name’s David Donahue. I’m an Environmental Specialist with EWEB. I think I know most of you but some new faces which is awesome to see. We actually have a great day. Hopefully, no smoke. But it should be good time to be out on the water.” Donahue spoke to the group before the exercise got underway.
The practice scenario for the drill was that used oil had spilled into the Willamette upstream of the Whitely Landing from the I-105 bridge.
“Oil spills on fast-moving rivers or water is really a complex thing to try to stop and to clean up,” said Karl Morgenstern, EWEB’s water restoration program manager.
Morgenstern launched the spill drill program around 2003 and has participated in annual spill drills ever since. He says the team uses ropes, pullies, and containment booms to direct the oil to an area where it can be collected. Then a skimmer is used to remove as much oil as possible.
“It’s a complicated response. We do this once a year and even then, you’re kind of relearning what you did last year,” said Morgenstern. “And the hope is that if there’s a spill in the year in between our drills that when we come together, we’re so much better and know what we’re doing together.”
The organizations that participated form a coalition called the McKenzie Watershed Emergency Response System. The group includes EWEB, the Army Corps of Engineers, Eugene Springfield Fire and EMS, Lane County Sheriff, McKenzie Fire & Rescue, and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, among others.
Nancy Toth with EWEB’s Source Water Protection said it’s really important to be able to respond if hazardous material get into the river.
“Particularly if it’s above our drinking water intake,” Toth said. “So, we do this so we wouldn’t have to shut down our drinking water intake potentially if there was a spill. But we certainly have the capability to do that if needed.”
The drill took place downstream of EWEB’s intake on the McKenzie River. There are downstream communities that rely on the Willamette River as a drinking water source, including Corvallis, Sherwood, and Wilsonville EWEB is also planning to build a second water treatment plant on the Willamette River so that we’re not dependent on a single source of drinking water for our 200,000 customers.
Multiple agencies working together on disaster response can make a big difference in a real-time situation. Morgenstern said this type of multi-agency oil spill drill is unique in Oregon.
“This just doesn’t happen to be honest.” Morgenstern said.
After the spill drill was over, EWEB's David Donahue said he thought it was a big success.
"We enjoyed a strong sense of teamwork and support throughout the exercise. We were also fortunate to have favorable weather, low river flows and good site access," said Donahue. "Although I’m hopeful we never have to face a major spill in a local waterway, I’m also grateful we have opportunities such as these to build relationships with other stakeholders, develop skills and test equipment in the field."
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