OSU prof talks about human impacts to the Willamette

PHILOMATH — Pedestrians and bicyclists soaked up the sunshine on First Street in Corvallis on Monday, enjoying the backdrop of the Willamette River.

The waterway wasn’t always viewed as a scenic resource, though.

For much of the state’s history, towns, cities and factories dumped untreated waste into the Willamette, said Bill Robbins, an Oregon State University emeritus distinguished professor of history.

“This is — and continues to be — one of the darker sides to the valley’s history,” he said during a lecture Monday at the Benton County Historical Museum in Philomath.

In 1907, the newly created Oregon Board of Health called the Willamette “an open sewer.”

The agency repeatedly called attention to water conditions, but mills and other polluters denied the problem or dismissed it as the cost of doing business.

Robbins noted how the river has been seen as a commodity since settlers arrived. In the early days it was a resource for transporting goods, and in 1871 the federal government funded a steam-powered snag puller to remove obstructions.

After viewing it primarily as an industrial corridor, people started thinking about the river as a recreational resource.

But civic protests and even a 1937 state clean water bill didn’t accomplish much. As late as the 1950s, some cities and towns along the river hadn’t installed even primary sewage treatment facilities.

By the 1960s, however, the river was the center of debate. In 1962 a turning point occurred with reporter Tom McCall’s documentary “Pollution in Paradise,” a sharply critical report.

McCall was elected governor in 1966, and protecting the Willamette River from pollution by taking a hard stance with mills and other industrial facilities brought him to national prominence.

Another factor in stopping pollution, Robbins argued, is the system of dams that regulate water flow, flushing contaminants down the river during what used to be low-flow months.

“What’s happening in the ocean is another question,” Robbins said.

The issue of pollution in the Willamette has resurfaced with a focus on runoff contamination, though. In 2000, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency designated a large section of Portland’s harbor a Superfund cleanup site.

Robbins said the Willamette has been ranked the sixth most polluted waterway in the nation.

His discussion was the eighth and final talk in The Benton Lectures, a new series of talks presented by the historical society.

Each lecture brought about 60 people to the museum.

“I’m stunned at the size of the crowd here,” said Robbins.

The series will continue next spring, though the theme still is top secret. This year’s lectures focused on defining moments in the valley’s history.

Kyle Odegard covers Philomath and rural Benton County. He can be contacted at kyle.odegard@lee.net or 758-9523.

At a glance

WHAT: OSU professor and author Bill Robbins talked about the history of pollution in the Willamette River during a presentation on Monday.

NEXT UP: The discussion was part of The Benton Lectures, a new series of talks presented by the Benton County Historical Society. Organizers saw the lectures as a success and plan to continue the series next spring.