Water Plant Workers Charged After Raw Sewage Leaks into Creek

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Situated just northwest of Oklahoma City, the
Bethany War Acres water treatment plant was

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recently the scene of a crime.

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That is according to Oklahoma County District
Attorney Vicky Behina,

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who has filed charges against two former
employees.

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The water treatment plant handles 3 million
gallons of raw sewage a day,

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and the county alleges that 55-year-old Anthony
Menzie and 63-year-old Glenn Brentnell

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committed multiple felonies in willfully
allowing waste to leak into a nearby creek.

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According to reports, regulators responded to a
complaint in.

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22, where they discovered improperly treated
and raw wastewater had been pooling near the

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plant and then flowing into nearby Bluff Creek.
Witnesses pointed to the two suspects and

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Menzie reportedly admitted to falsifying lab
records in order to downplay fecal

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contamination levels, something he says he was
instructed to do by Brent Nell,

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the plant manager.
A report in the Oklahoman points to ongoing

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problems with the facility between 20.
In 2022,

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including noncompliance as well as problems
with the wastewater management system.

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These issues led to at least 4 notices to be
issued to the facility.

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The state's Department of Environmental Quality
alleges in court documents that after an

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emergency order was issued, the agency learned
that there were no personnel on site at the

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facility and that the doors were locked.
Shortly thereafter,

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in late 2022, Bretnell is said to have abruptly
retired.

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Though the suit says he claimed the issues in
the notices were minor,

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a separate investigation by a public trust
disagreed.

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They suggest it was these issues that led to
the discharge of waste water into Bluff Creek

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and the subsequent cover up.

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While local authorities hope to see Menzie and
Brentnell face the music,

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they also stress that the problems are being
addressed.

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Regulators say the situation at the plant has
improved, and the facility is on its way to

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getting back in compliance.

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I'm Anna Wells, and this is Manufacturing now.