The long running fight between Snohomish and King counties over the Brightwater sewage treatment plant could be over.
A document obtained by The Herald shows King County agreeing to pay $70 million to offset the impact of building the sewage treatment plant in south Snohomish County.
Snohomish County Executive Director Tom Fitzpatrick said documents have been passed back and forth between the two counties as part of negotiations, but said a final deal has not been reached.
“We are continuing our negotiations and have not reached an agreement,” Fitzpatrick.
The $70 million would be spent on building parks, road widening, sidewalks, bike lanes and protecting the area’s creeks for fish.
The draft agreement also says that a hearing examiner would be hired to oversee construction of the $1.48 billion treatment plant.
It also spells out details for managing odor at the treatment plant, and specifies that the project be designed to contain up to 5.5 million gallons of spilled sewage or chemicals.
That provision is to ensure no sewage would leave the plant in the event of catastrophic damage from an earthquake.
A member of the Sno-King Environmental Alliance, which opposes Brightwater, provided a copy of the draft agreement to The Herald.
Earlier in negotiations, Snohomish County had been asking King County to pay $80 million and King County had been offering to pay $50 million.
Reporter Lukas Velush: 425-339-3449 or lvelush@heraldnet.com.
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