El Paso water: Rio Grande riverbed clean up complete; riverbank soil removal continues
EL PASO, Texas – El Paso Water says the riverbed clean-up effort following the Frontera Wastewater Emergency is complete, but work remains to remove soils from the riverbank.
On Wednesday, El Paso water could not tell ABC-7 when the clean-up would be complete.
The utility dumped more than a billion gallons of sewage into the river following burst pipelines during an August 13 storm.
“As agreed upon with our partners, when the water is released from Elephant Butte, the river will be
ready,” said Gilbert Trejo, Interim Chief Operations Officer for Production and Treatment.
According to El Paso Water, piles of soil removed from portions of the riverbed have been stockpiled on the riverbed.
The piles will be dried out before testing and being transported for proper disposal. That will continue for weeks.
El Paso Water says quality sampling show river flows have returned to pre-discharge conditions.
