Man admits to dumping sewage in Flathead
For the Hungry Horse News
A Columbia Falls man has pleaded guilty to dumping sewage from his septic-pumping truck into the Flathead River at the Kokanee Bend fishing access last April.
Dale Jacobsen, 50, pleaded guilty to violating the federal Clean Water Act in U.S. District Court in Missoula on Feb. 20. Judge Donald Molloy heard the case.
Jacobsen faces up to three years in prison, a fine ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 and one year of supervised release. Sentencing is set for May 31. He is currently released on special conditions.
According to the charge, Jacobsen, operating as J & M Septic Pumping, knowingly discharged sewage into the river at Kokanee Bend on April 24.
Two witnesses reported the incident to authorities. One, who wishes to remain anonymous, was fishing at Kokanee Bend at the time and heard a noise that needed investigation. Jacobsen told the witness he was taking in river water, an explanation he later gave to state officials.
According to U.S. Attorney William Mercer, the witness directed Jacobsen to sewage visible in the river, at which point Jacobsen turned off the pumping mechanism, packed up his hose and left the area.
The witness then reported the incident to the Columbia Falls Police Department.
Fish, Wildlife and Parks Region 1 parks manager David Landstrom responded immediately and gathered samples of fecal matter, feminine products and condoms along the river's edge. He said the waste was tangled up in vegetation, as the river was running fast.
FWP Region 1 warden captain Lee Anderson initiated an investigation, as did the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, but the case was soon handed over to the Environmental Protection Agency.
According to Mercer, Jacobsen admitted to an EPA investigator on June 20 that he intentionally dumped sewage into the river and that he lied to the witness. He also admitted he knew that dumping waste into the river was illegal, but he had justified it to himself by saying the waste he was discharging from his truck was mostly water.
Jacobsen never had a Montana state license to operate a septic-pumping business, according to Renai Hill, an environmental science specialist with the DEQ in Helena. Jacobsen had recently purchased the business, but a license to pump sewage is not automatically transferred when a business changes owners.