Wyoming fines Park Service for spills

Wyoming officials have taken the "unprecedented step" of moving to fine the National Park Service for repeatedly spilling sewage into "some of the most pristine waters in Yellowstone National Park."

The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality on Oct. 15 sent a notice of violation to Park Service officials in Yellowstone listing four spills of sewage in the park this year, and the DEQ then referred the case to the state attorney general. Twice last year sewage overflowed into Yellowstone Lake, and in the last two months sewage also spewed from Old Faithful facilities into Myriad Creek and the Firehole River (Greenwire, 8/5).

Wyoming law bars pollution of Class I waters, which include the lake and streams affected by the spills. The DEQ's Gary Beach said the state had no choice but to take action against the Park Service, and the Environmental Protection Agency "fully supports" the move, according to the agency's Art Palomares.

Yellowstone's Tim Hudson said park crews will take steps next year to avoid spills (Michael Milstein, Billings Gazette, 10/30).