COEUR d'ALENE - The politics of it he wants no part of, but Tom Daugherty, president of Blue Water Technologies, says he believes even if the plan for new limits on phosphorus discharges into the Spokane River stands, the company's technology can provide the means to achieve those requirements.

"We have five years of data showing under 20 parts per billion," he said. That comes from the Hayden treatment plant, and proves the 36 PPB sought as a maximum by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in approving the plan developed by Washington Ecology is achievable, he said.

"It is ironic that the number on the Idaho side is 36, and a foot across the state line it is 42," Daugherty said.

A two-year pilot project in Coeur d'Alene using Blue Water's system is in its third month, and is producing levels below 50 PPB, said Sid Fredrickson, superintendent of the city's wastewater utility department. But he is concerned about meeting the stricter standards.

"I asked the national vice president of wastewater company HDR and an engineer, would you certify you can design and build a system that meets a 50 PPB seasonal average, and the answer was yes," Fredrickson said. "I asked him would you certify you can design and build a system that meets a 42 PPB seasonal average, and the answer was no. I said 'I don't have to ask you about 36.'"

The city of Post Falls and Hayden Area Regional Sewer Board filed a federal lawsuit challenging the rule, and Coeur d'Alene also plans to file a complaint that will be consolidated with the first.

The difficulty in improving phosphorus reduction increases tenfold for each number you go down, said Jim Kimball, senior project engineer for JUB Engineers, who is working with Post Falls on its options to meet whatever final requirement is determined.

Kimball says Daugherty created controversy in the industry when he put a comment in Blue Water's newsletter, noting contradicting opinions between Spokane County Utilities Director Bruce Rawls, who said he believes a new treatment plant there will meet requirements, and Spokane County Commissioner Todd Mielke, quoted in The Coeur d'Alene Press on June 27 saying "There is no technology in existence today that would meet the standards set by the (Washington) Department of Ecology."

It depends on how measurements are taken, whether at normal flow or full flow, Kimball said.

"There is truth in both those," he said.

Two other systems are also undergoing long-term testing in Coeur d'Alene and Fredrickson said each has its advantages. The Blue Water system is slightly less costly to install, though each comes in around $60 million. The Blue Water system requires more space, but an equally significant factor is going to be the cost of operating, including manpower.

Daugherty says the Blue Water system requires less training to operate, with a North Idaho College intern currently among those helping run the Coeur d'Alene test site. He believes early results showing 17 to 20 PPB are achievable once full tweaking of the system is complete.

"I think Coeur d'Alene is doing all the right moves," he said.