The South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has fined Agropur, Inc. for violations at its facility in Lake Norden.
Agropur, a dairy cooperative, was fined $66,360 for surface water discharge permit violations.
According to a release from DENR, Agropur’s Lake Norden wastewater treatment plant discharges to the Big Sioux River under a surface water discharge permit that became effective on Nov. 1, 2018. Since discharges began on April 9, 2019, Agropur has reported violations of its limits for ammonia, nitrates, conductivity, and alkalinity.
In addition, Agropur had two emergency discharges due to operational errors and laboratory results indicated their discharge could be toxic to minnows and water fleas.
“The Surface Water Discharge Permit violations at Agropur’s Lake Norden facility must not continue,” said DENR Secretary Hunter Roberts. “Agropur has worked closely with DENR throughout their permitting process, and we will continue to work with the company to bring their plant into compliance and prevent any future violations.”
As of Aug. 14, Agropur has been ordered to submit a report to DENR from its consulting engineer identifying the causes of the effluent violations, the steps taken to correct the violations, and any additional steps needed to achieve compliance. DENR staff continue to work with Agropur to ensure the necessary corrective actions are taken as soon as possible.
“The permit violations that occurred during startup are disappointing to all of us at Agropur,” said Agropur’s Vice President of Operations Tim Czmowski. “We have made significant investments in water treatment over the past 12 months of construction and startup, and as a significant investor in South Dakota’s dairy industry we take our responsibility of protecting the environment seriously.”
For more information about Agropur’s permit or DENR’s Surface Water Discharge permitting program visit denr.sd.gov.
Source: ksfy.com
