Pflugerville Hasn't Paid State Fine After Chlorine Creek Spill

PFLUGERVILLE, TX — Pflugerville officials have yet to pay a state fine of more than $30,000 for a fish-killing spill of chlorinated water into a creek earlier this year as they continue "evaluating our options," a city spokesperson told Patch.

A mechanical failure occurring on Sunday, March 3, went undetected until the following Monday morning, spilling more than 3 million gallons of chlorinated water into Gilleland Creek. A dechlorination pump at the City of Pflugerville Gilleland Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant malfunctioned, resulting in the discharge of some 3.4 million gallons of treated, chlorinated water into the creek, officials said at the time.

Through a formal request for information, Patch later learned the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) subsequently assessed a fine of $33,000 against the city for the spill, as an agency spokeswoman there confirmed in response to inquiries. Learning that, Patch asked Pflugerville spokeswoman Maggie Holman for an update on three fronts: The status of the fine; related to any plans on appealing the regulatory penalty; and what steps, if any, had been taken to prevent such a spill in the future.

“The City of Pflugerville Public Works Department received the letter from TCEQ and we are evaluating our options," Holman wrote in response. "We are committed to making sure this does not happen in the future."

Related stories:

Pflugerville Was Fined More Than $30K After Chlorine Creek Spill

Pump Fail Dumps 3.4M Gallons Of Chlorinated Water In Pflugerville

Patch followed up seeking a more robust response to questions, prompting the spokeswoman to reply: "I understand we provided a very short answer to your questions. We have not paid the penalty, and are currently discussing our course of action with TCEQ. Therefore, I cannot provide you any information on next steps or preventative measures at this time."

The incident marked the second time in just over three years that a major spill of chlorinated water has occurred at the creek. According to information found on the City of Pflugerville website, a contractor inadvertently ruptured an 8-inch water main that caused a spill of 560,000 gallons of chlorinated water into the creek — a volume roughly a quarter the size of the most recent spill this week.

A Texas Parks and Wildlife investigation found the 2015 discharge killed about 1,575 fish, according to the website. The restitution value of the lost fish and investigation cost was calculated at the time to be $1,047, city officials reported.

And in 2014, more than a million gallons of untreated sewage flowed into Gilleland Creek in the early hours of a Sunday morning after a power outage disabled a Pflugerville wastewater treatment plant, according to the Austin American-Statesman.