SCC Community Development Committee approves “Manure Spill and Brown Water Event Response Plan”
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
HUDSON — The St. Croix County Community Development Committee has approved a “Manure Spill and Brown Water Event Response Plan.”
The St. Croix County Health and Human Services Board received the plan in November and made some suggestions for changes, such as a better flow chart, said Tim Stieber, resource management administrator in the St. Croix County Community Development Department, at the committee’s January 21 meeting.
The suggestions for changes have been incorporated into the plan, and the flow chart will “leave an excellent trail” if problems continue with manure spills or brown water events that will allow St. Croix County to move toward enforcement in conjunction with the state Department of Natural Resources, he said.
Judy Achterhof, county board supervisor and a member of the community development committee, asked about the penalty of up to $5,000 per day for a violation.
The amount is set in state statute by the DNR, Stieber said.
The focus of the plan is not enforcement. The purpose of the plan to tighten up the county’s response when there is a manure spill or a brown water event, he said.
The plan defines a spill as “a discharge that is typically a one-time event or occurrence and is usually inadvertent.”
The plan defines “brown water” as “brown or yellow water (that) can occur in private wells due to manure contamination and may also have an odor of manure.”
The plan will help make sure that when the county issues a public notification of a manure spill to a group of homes that there is a good basis to say “yes, the spill could reach your home,” Stieber said.
Even when there is a massive manure spill, it is difficult to say contamination came from a particular event, to say that bacteria came from a particular operation, he said.
Response
Since there is no tracking method for groundwater, how can decisions be made on unknown circumstances? Achterhof asked.
The chart included in the plan helps direct the response. When manure enters public water, there is a significant risk, Stieber said.
If a spill is five gallons of manure, it is unlikely to create a problem. If a large manure tanker spills into a public waterway, then yes, it is likely to create a problem, he said.
Sink holes in a spill area are a significant factor in contamination, so the county is working on mapping sink holes, Stieber said.
Setbacks have been established for spreading manure within a certain distance of wells, so if a spill is within the setback, there is a more significant chance of contaminating a well, he said.
Weather conditions, such as saturated ground after a rain, also affect how manure spills will spread, Stieber said.
If there is no significant risk of contaminating wells, then no public notice is issued, and the county will work with the landowner to get the spill cleaned up, Stieber said, adding that the county wants to avoid unneeded notification to the public.
Most of the farmers, 90 to 95 percent, are conscientious, but clean water also is important, Achterhof said, adding that she commended county staff for their hard work on the response plan.
Well testing
St. Croix County staff have expertise in analyzing manure spills and brown water events, said Cole Webster, water resources and outreach specialist.
When there are brown water events in wells, the wells should be tested regardless of the source of the contamination, he said.
St. Croix County has a need to increase water testing in rural areas. Some wells have not been tested in more that 10 years, and “that is a concern,” Stieber said.
The aim of the plan is to better define the county’s role in notifying the DNR and the public and to aim for a more consistence response. The DNR supports the response plan, Stieber said.
The DNR oversees Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) and state waters, and the county oversees non-CAFOs and waters that are not state waters, Webster said.
The focus of the plan is to determine where the contamination came from, but nitrate contamination is not a specific focus of the response plan. If a well is high in bacteria, the DNR can track the contamination, Webster said.
County staff have determined now that the Manure Spill and Brown Water Event Response plan is completed and is clarifying what has is already being done in St. Croix County, the plan does not have to go to the county board for approval.
The St. Croix County Health and Human Services Board approved the plan at the January 20 meeting.
The St. Croix County Community Development Committee unanimously approved the plan at the January 21 meeting.
Risk
According to the Summary Table of Factors Considered in Determining Public Risk included in the response plan, a spill size of less than 3,000 gallons presents a low risk, a spill size of 3,000 to 15,000 gallons presents a moderate risk and a spill size of greater than 15,000 gallons presents a significant risk.
If a 3,000 gallon spill is greater than 300 feet from a waterway leading to public waters, it presents a low risk.
If a spill is 3,000 to 15,000 gallons and is within 300 feet of a navigable stream or within 1,000 feet of a navigable lake or pond, it presents a moderate risk.
If a spill of greater than 15,000 gallons enters any public water, it poses a significant risk.
If there is no sinkhole in the proximity of a manure spill of less than 3,000 gallons, it represents a low risk.
If there is a possible sinkhole in the area of a 3,000 to 15,000 gallon manure spill, it poses a moderate risk.
If there is a spill of greater than 15,000 gallons within 100 feet of a drainage pathway to a verified sinkhole, it presents a significant risk.
If a 3,000 gallon manure spill is two times the minimum application setback from a well, it presents a low risk.
If a manure spill of 3,000 to 15,00 gallons is within one to two times the minimum application setback, it poses a moderate risk.
If a manure spill of 15,000 gallons is within the minimum application setback for a well, it poses a significant risk.
If there is a 3,000 gallon manure spill with dry soil, it poses a low risk.
If there is a 3,000 to 15,000 gallon manure spill in normal weather, it poses a moderate risk.
If there is a manure spill greater than 15,000 gallons during a wet cycle with wet soil, it poses a significant risk.
If a 3,000 gallon manure spill is greater than a half mile from a wellhead protection area, it poses a low risk.
If a manure spill of 3,000 to 15,000 gallons is less than a half mile from a wellhead protection area, it poses a moderate risk.
If a manure spill of greater than 15,000 gallons is within a wellhead protection area, it poses a significant risk.
