ASHLAND, Ore. (AP) — The city of Ashland could save millions of dollars by planting trees to help cool sewage effluent.
The Ashland Daily Tidings reports the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality wants the city of Ashland to do something about the overly warm, treated sewage effluent that it dumps into Ashland Creek.
Ashland Creek then flows into Bear Creek, where warm water can be harmful to fish.
A study done by a firm hired by the city shows building a cooling tower and a chiller to cool the effluent would cost from $6 million to $8 million, plus another $200,000 annually for operations.
