The Dalles hears annual wastewater treatment report

Farris continued on to say that the facility also produced approximately 2.2 million gallons of biosolids, which were used by surrounding farmlands for soil enhancement and fertilizer.

Following this report, City Manager Matthew Klebes gave an update on the shopping cart ordinance that went into effect in late January. According to Klebes, the city is still in the education and compliance stage of the ordinance, with outreach being the primary priority, to ensure all affected businesses and grocery stores are aware of the requirements.

Klebes also addressed the recent news of the river cruise line American Queen Voyages’ closure. He informed the council that the city’s agreement is with American Cruise Lines, a separate company from AQV, and that, after speaking with ACL, the city was confident that there would still be sufficient dockings this year. They will be working with ACL going forward to mitigate any potential problems caused by AQV’s closure, he said.

Another item in Klebes’ report was recent complaints about odors in the community, particularly around Dirt Huggers' compost facility. He said that the city had a productive visit at the facility, and that Dirt Huggers explained they would be taking steps to help mitigate some of the odor, including adding an aeration system to take air from the material piles and put them through a filter before being discharged.

In other business, the council adopted a resolution authorizing transfers of budgeted amounts between categories, with $138,885 moving from the contingency line in the general fund to cover various expenses, including to the city clerk budget and the police department. There was also $339,000 taken from the contingency line item at the airport fund and moved to the terminal water distribution system.

The council will next meet at 5:30 p.m. on March 11, both at The Dalles City Hall and on Zoom. The meeting also streams on YouTube.