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--> --> Environmentalists to sue track over manure dumping PORTLAND (AP) - Environ-mentalists said Tuesday they will sue Portland Meadows racetrack to force its new owners to stop allowing horse manure to drain into the Columbia Slough. The track's owners, Magna Entertainment Corp., said it was working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to address the longstanding manure problem, and called the lawsuit "unfair." The goal of the lawsuit is to force the racetrack to stop operating until it has obtained a water discharge permit under the federal Clean Water Act, said Mark Riskedahl, executive director of the Northwest Environmental Defense Center. The center, along with the environmental group Columbia Riverkeep, notified track owners of their intention to file the lawsuit in 60 days. EPA officials in Seattle and Magna officials said they have been negotiating a consent agreement to allow the racetrack to continue having horse races as they work toward compliance with the Clean Water Act. In May, Magna bought the Portland Meadows and Multnomah Greyhound Park, a dog racing track east of Portland. Magna also operates Bay Meadows and Golden Gate Fields racetracks in the San Francisco Bay Area, Santa Anita in Los Angeles and Gulfstream Park in Miami, among others. Portland Meadows president Arthur McFadden said Tuesday he thinks the lawsuit is "unfair" because the environmental fix was part of the purchase deal. "We immediately engineered and planned a $600,000 to $1 million fix for this environmental problem. We just now started it. It's supposed to be in place this spring," McFadden said. "It seems unfair that they are picking on us. We are the first guys that have ever done anything," he said. Portland Meadows was founded in 1946 and has had a series of owners in recent years. Hundreds of horses are kept there during the racing season, which runs from late October to late April. The EPA in April 2000 sued the previous owners of the racetrack in U.S. District Court in Portland, saying the operators had failed to follow an agency order to keep manure from running off into a ditch that eventually reaches the slough. That lawsuit still is working its way through the court and a settlement, said the EPA's Bub Loiselle. Negotiations between EPA and Magna are designed to ensure that the track "over a period of time" fully complies with the law, said Loiselle. Magna has worked hard to manage its surface-water runoff problems, including building a large covered manure shed, hauling manure daily, and using a street sweeper and vacuum to clean outdoor areas to keep heavy rain from forcing the runoff into the slough, Loiselle said. A permanent system will pump runoff into holding tanks, he said. Riskedahl, of the Northwest Environmental Defense Center, said the Columbia Slough has high levels of e.coli and fecal coliform bacteria, and environmentalists are concerned that the EPA will not force the track to fully comply with the law. "The state and federal agencies have given far too much leeway" to the track's owners, he said. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing