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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 9, 2018
MEDIA CONTACT: Brian Jergenson or Tom McCarthy at 563-927-2640 or Brian.Jergenson@dnr.iowa.gov or Tom.McCarthy@dnr.iowa.gov.
PEOSTA – Cleanup
of Monday’s diesel spill near Peosta will take weeks or months, but the amount
of diesel fuel that reached Catfish Creek appears limited according to the DNR.
“The large
BP storage tank is now empty, and most of the diesel fuel was retained in an
area around the tank. BP has environmental contractors and cleanup crews working
around the clock to recover fuel that was retained at the site,” said Tom
McCarthy, DNR inspector.
BP reports
they’ve recovered almost 40,000 gallons of the estimated 60,900 gallons of leaked
fuel, and that number is expected to climb as recovery efforts continue.
“All
indications show that little fuel reached the creek. There are absorbent booms
crossing the creek at five different locations downstream. Fuel has been
detected at only two of them: at Cottingham Road and near Mines of Spain,” McCarthy
said. “You can’t see or smell diesel at either of those locations since the absorbent
booms were changed on Monday.”
The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency and BP have been monitoring water and air
quality at the creek.
DNR
fisheries biologists say fish in the stream may be safe to eat, but they do not
recommend it at this time.
BP staff
discovered the leak from an aboveground bulk storage tank at 9:20 a.m. Aug. 6 at
their facility on Old Highway Road, Peosta.
The DNR will continue to monitor cleanup
activities. DNR will also consider appropriate enforcement action.
MEDIA CONTACT: Tim
Hall at 515-725-8298 or Tim.Hall@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES — Parts of Iowa experienced a very dry July, with
Des Moines receiving only 0.38 inches of rain for the entire month, according
to the latest Water Summary Update.
Temperatures across the state were generally near normal,
with an average statewide temperature of 73.1 degrees. That’s about a half a
degree cooler than normal.
“The pattern of wetter in the north and drier in the south
for Iowa continued through July, with some parts of southeast Iowa now 15
inches short of rainfall over the past 12 months," said Tim Hall,
Hydrology Resources Coordinator for the Iowa DNR. "This is concerning,
since average monthly rainfall begins to drop as we move into the fall
months."
Streamflow conditions in much of the state remained above
normal throughout July.
For a thorough review of Iowa’s water resource trends, go
to www.iowadnr.gov/watersummaryupdate.
The report is prepared by technical staff from Iowa DNR, the
Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, IIHR—Hydroscience and
Engineering, and the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with Iowa
Homeland Security and Emergency Management Department.
MEDIA CONTACT: Jerah Sheets at 515-313-8909
or Jerah.Sheets@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES – Water quality improvement projects, land
quality grant proposals and amendments to household hazardous waste rules are
up for the Environmental Protection Commission’s approval Aug. 21.
The meeting is open to
the public and begins at 10 a.m. in Room 116 of the State Capitol, 1007 E.
Grand Ave., Des Moines. At the discretion of the chairperson,
requests to speak during the business meeting will be limited to comments that
specifically address agenda items.
Please submit requests to speak and
written comments to Jerah Sheets at Jerah.Sheets@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-313-8909 or c/o DNR, 502 E. Ninth St., Des Moines, IA 50319 by noon the day before the meeting.
A lake restoration project and contract amendments for
Geographic Information Systems work are also up for commissioners’ approval.
The complete agenda follows:
- Approval of Agenda
- Approval of the
Minutes June 19
- Approval of the Minutes
July 17
- Monthly Reports
- Acting Director’s Remarks
- Contract
with Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) – Black Hawk
Lake Watershed
- Contract
with Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) – Easter Lake
Watershed Project
- Environmental
Management Systems Grant Award Recommendation
- Adopted and
Filed – Amendments to:
- Chapter 119
- Used Oil and Used Oil Filters
- Chapter 123
– Regional Collection Centers and Mobile Unit Collection and Consolidation
Centers
- Chapter 144
– Household Hazardous Materials Education
- Chapter 211
– Financial Assistance for the Collection of Household Hazardous Materials and
Hazardous Waste from Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators
- Chapter 214
– Household Hazardous Materials Program
- Contract
with Des Moines County Soil & Water Conservation District (Des Moines SWCD)
- Contract
Amendment 2 with University of
Northern Iowa GeoTREE Center
- Contract Amendment #2 to an existing contract (17ESDLQBSRALS-999)
with Stantec
Consulting Services, Inc. for Program Management (PM) and Community Engagement
& Risk Communication (CERC) Flood Plain Mapping Services
- Contract Amendment #2 to existing contracts (17ESDLQBSRALS-0001) with
a Pre-Qualified Company for Flood Plain Mapping Services
- Contract Amendment #2 to existing contracts (17ESDLQBSRALS-0002
through 0004) with three Pre-Qualified Companies for Flood Plain Mapping
Services
- Items for Next
Month’s Meeting
- ·
Monday,
Sept. 17 – EPC Educational Tour – Clayton County
- ·
Tuesday,
Sept. 18 – EPC Business Meeting – Clayton County
- ·
Tuesday,
Oct. 16 – EPC Business Meeting – Des Moines
The complete agenda
and item briefs are available on the DNR website.
Commissioners
include: Ralph Lents, Menlo, chair; Joe Riding, Altoona, vice chair; Rebecca Guinn, Bettendorf, Secretary; Mary Boote, Des
Moines; Nancy Couser, Nevada; Howard Hill, Cambridge; Harold Hommes, Windsor
Heights; and Bob Sinclair, Sigourney. Bruce Trautman is the acting director of
the DNR.
MEDIA CONTACT: Ed Tormey, DNR, at 515-725-8373 or Ed.Tormey@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES – DNR staff work with individuals, businesses and
communities to help them protect our natural resources by complying with state
and federal laws. This approach is very effective. In the few cases where
compliance cannot be achieved, the DNR issues enforcement actions. The
following list summarizes recent enforcement actions. Find the entire, original
orders on DNR’s website at www.iowadnr.gov/EnforcementActions
Consent Orders
A consent order is issued as an alternative to issuing an
administrative order. A consent order indicates that the DNR has voluntarily
entered into a legally enforceable agreement with the other party.
Guthrie
County
Carolyn Guttenfelder
Revocation of drinking water treatment and drinking water
distribution certifications.
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