Iowa Department of Natural Resources Environmental Services Division For Immediate Release April 18, 2007 1. Leaking valve leads to Washington fertilizer spill 2. Small sewage leak to Sun Valley Lake LEAKING VALVE LEADS TO WASHINGTON FERTILIZER SPILL MEDIA CONTACT: Dennis Ostwinkle at (319) 461-0661. WASHINGTON -- A Washington business is cleaning up following a nitrogen fertilizer spill Wednesday that reached a creek, causing a small fish kill. A leaking valve on a storage tank at Liqui-Grow spilled an estimated 500 gallons of 32 percent nitrogen fertilizer into the company’s gravel parking lot. The fertilizer ran into a storm drain, which carried an unknown amount of the fertilizer 1.5 miles before dumping it directly into an unnamed tributary of South Long Creek. Liqui-Grow staff discovered the leak Wednesday morning and estimates the leak began sometime overnight. "Liqui-Grow worked quickly to stop the leak and plug the storm drain once it discovered the leak," said Dennis Ostwinkle, supervisor of the DNR's Washington field office. "That helped prevent further environmental damage." About a dozen dead minnows were found in the stream following the spill, although the creek generally does not support large numbers of fish, Ostwinkle said. Downstream water users, including livestock operations, have been notified of the spill. Liqui-Grow will clean the gravel lot and the rest of the spill area. Writer: Jessie Brown # # # SMALL SEWAGE LEAK TO SUN VALLEY LAKE MEDIA CONTACT: Dan Olson at (712) 243-1934. ELLSTON -- A small amount of sewage, perhaps 25 gallons, reached Sun Valley Lake in Ringgold County after a sanitary sewer line was damaged during routine electrical work on Tuesday afternoon. The Southwest Iowa Rural Electric Cooperative was boring under a road near the lake and damaged the sewer line. About 1,000 gallons of raw sewage leaked from the pipe, but most of it was recovered from the road ditch and hauled to a treatment plant. Sun Valley Sanitary Sewer District employees repaired the line and applied lime to the road ditch and ground where the spill occurred. The DNR is not anticipating legal action. Writer: Karen Grimes - 30 - Karen Grimes 515-281-5135 [log in to unmask] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: [log in to unmask] Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp