For the greater part of the last week, Bluestem Prairie has been trying to track down information about an incident involving the sewage treatment ponds for the City of Vernon Center.
It's a small town of 332 people in Blue Earth County, more or less south of Mankato, on the banks of the Blue Earth River.
On or around February 9, the City of Vernon Center called the DCA's duty officer about an incident, noting that "something had gone into the sewer...probably from a vehicle wash." This information is from report # 172266, according to the duty officer answering on Tuesday.
Several local sources tell Bluestem that the vehicles were fertilizer trucks from the Crystal Valley Coop and the substance that killed the "bugs" in the treatment plant that cause sewage to breakdown is a nitrogen extender or additive that killed microbes in the ponds. With that, the Vernon Center ponds "died" and thus the city is spreading wastewater on area fields until the ponds can regrow waste-munching microbes.
It's not clear when the chemicals entered Vernon Center's sewer ponds. The chemical that caused the problem appears to be a nitrogen extender, as we noted above. These additives have been used since the 1960s and 1970s, but use in the winter is unusual a source tells us, as the chemicals, which degrade very quickly, are usually used in warmer weather, when nitrogen-hungry microbes are more of a problem in fields. The purpose of the chemicals is to secure more of the fertilizer for a farmer's crops.
A source familiar with the Department of Natural Resource's knowledge of the situation said that no fish or aquatic life had been harmed by the incident and given the quick degradation of the chemicals, it would be unlikely that fish in the Blue Earth River would experience the fate of the pond's microbes from the chemical, if any untreated water had reached the river before the incident was brought to the state's attention.
As a expert in fertilizer research noted this morning when asked about research on these situations by Representative David Bly, DFL-Northfield,
in the Minnesota House Ag Policy Committee, it's not possible to discuss the incident or research on the chemical when one doesn't know what it is. We had sent the question to Bly since we're trying to find information about the Vernon Center episode.
We're waiting to hear from the MPCA about that piece of information .
A public notice for a special meeting about the issue on February 21 was posted in the Vernon Center post office and city hall, but as Vernon Center has no website, we're not sure of the details of what happened at the meeting. We're waiting for a call back from the city clerk.
Here's the notice about the public meeting that was up at the Vernon Center Post Office:
We've also contacted the MPCA at its Rochester and St. Paul communications office. The Rochester communications staff member sent us to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture communications office, which deferred to the MPCA as the lead office in handling the incident.
According to the MPCA's Rochester Office information officer, neighboring property owners to where the sewer pond water is being spread have been informed about the activity. However, area resident John Rollings, who lives next to the property, says that he did not receive notice.
Here's the photo of the truck spreading wastewater "right out my . . .window," taken by Rollings. Other photos taken from the Rollings' deck show the truck spreading wastewater on yet another day.
We'll have more on this as soon as the MPCA gets back to us.
Photos: A drone's view of wastewater spread in a field near the Blue Earth River (top); the public notice (middle); a truck spraying wastewater in a field (bottom).
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Well, maybe none of the nitrogen extender got into the river, but what is going to happen to the "stuff" they sprayed on the field? Is the ground not frozen? And aren't we predicted to have a rainstorm this weekend?
Posted by: Jim Harkness | Feb 28, 2018 at 05:19 PM