Iowa Department of Natural ResourcesEnvironmental Services Division For Immediate Release                                                  	   August 27, 2007 COMMUNITIES DISCHARGE WASTEWATER AS RAIN CONTINUES TO FALL MEDIA CONTACT: Kevin Baskins at (515) 281-8395 or Mike Wade at (563)927-2640. DES MOINES — Following a short period of dry weather, rain Mondaymorning has led additional Iowa communities to bypass wastewater. In addition, some communities are discharging partially treatedwastewater from lagoon facilities that have filled during the pastweek’s storms. The wastewater in these lagoons has not been instorage for 180 days, as required by DNR rules. However, with high riverflows to provide extra dilution, these discharges will likely be withinwater quality limits, according to Mike Wade, an environmentalspecialist in the DNR’s Manchester field office. “Most wastewater treatment systems that use lagoons regularly drawdown the level of wastewater in the lagoons each spring and fall whenstream flows are higher,” said Wade. “This provides storage roomthrough summer and winter, and facilities can only drawdown if thedischarge will meet their permit limits.” Monday’s lagoon drawdowns come only about two weeks before mostcommunities conduct regular fall drawdowns. The facilities will collectsamples of the discharges. Communities reporting bypasses (not from lagoons) to the DNR Mondayinclude: Buchanan CountyIndependence: To prevent sewage from backing up into basements, theCity of Independence began bypassing wastewater at 10:30 a.m. Saturday.The city is bypassing from a manhole at First Avenue and Fifth Street NEto its storm sewer, which discharges directly to the WapsipiniconRiver. Clayton CountyGarnavillo: The City of Garnavillo began bypassing untreated wastewaterfrom its south lift station to an unnamed tributary of Buck Creek at8:40 a.m. Monday. Van Buren CountyBirmingham: The City of Birmingham bypassed untreated wastewater fromtwo locations beginning at 4:00 a.m. Saturday. The bypass from thecity’s main lift station to an unnamed tributary of Cedar Creekended at noon Sunday. The bypass from the Grinder Pump location on WestCedar Street to an unnamed tributary of the Des Moines River ended at10:00 a.m. Sunday. Facilities must report bypasses caused by mechanical failures to theDNR within 12 hours, while they are required to reportprecipitation-related bypasses on their monthly operating reports. -30-
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