Greg Geist, director of Clackamas Water Environment Services (WES), told the West Linn City Council on Sept. 2 that WES is finishing a large outfall project called "Clackamole," advancing a Willamette-area pump station and force main upgrade, and recommending a 4.9% rate increase for fiscal 2025-26.

"We are a special district that provides sewer services for six cities and unincorporated Clackamas County, about 190,000 residents," Greg Geist said. He described WES's role as turning wastewater into clean water, producing electricity for plant use and creating biosolids used as fertilizer.

Geist briefed the council on the Tri-City outfall project (nicknamed "Clackamole"), a roughly $58 million project that relocates the treatment plant's primary outfall to a deeper section of the Willamette River and adds a multi-port diffuser with 18 risers to improve dilution and protect fish habitat. Construction used a mix of open-cut and micro-tunneling methods; the micro-tunnel machine was imported and launched from a 28-foot-deep shaft in July 2024 and recovered from the river in January 2025. WES expects diffuser installation and project completion between July and October 2025.

Geist also described planned upgrades to the Willamette pump station (originally installed in 1985-86), including relocating and expanding the station outside the floodplain, replacing force main piping toward the I-205 bridge and avoiding impacts to wetlands under a DEQ-approved wetland plan. WES scheduled a neighborhood meeting for Sept. 10 to brief residents on the project; Geist said noise monitoring is underway near the Blue Heron lagoons as the agency seeks to limit construction noise impacts.

On rates, Geist said West Linn residential customers will pay about $30.75 per month under the 2025-26 budget, a 4.9% increase (about $1.45 per month). He said WES relies on long-term capital planning and predictable rate increases to fund infrastructure with multidecade lifespans.

Geist highlighted WES's energy program, which now produces roughly 40% of the facility's energy needs and helped realize a recent 4.1% energy reduction, and described continuing rehabilitation projects (primary clarifiers, aeration basins, influent pump station) and community outreach, tours and sponsorships. He noted WES received Oregon Association of Clean Water Agencies member-agency awards in 2019 and 2025.

Council members thanked Geist and WES staff and indicated interest in facility tours; the council did not take formal action at the work session.