City, County and State Government Working Together in Hastings Minnesota For River Water Quality Preservation

THE VERMILLION RIVER AT HASTINGS

 (Click to Enlarge Photo)

Over the last two years I have been pleased to become acquainted with individuals in our local government agencies whose job it is to safeguard the quality of our Minnesota waterways.

From the Public Works Department in Hastings to the Dakota County and Vermilion Joint Powers Watershed Authorities to the Minnesota Environmental Protection Agency, all have performed professionally and effectively by empowering the citizenry, supporting vigilance, conducting effective water testing and ultimately taking enforcement action against a cleaning company who was dumping toxic residue into a storm sewer near the Vermillion River.

The Hastings Gazette and Pioneer Press, who have also done a stellar job in publicizing the issue, carried articles on this endeavor recently:

http://www.twincities.com/dakota/ci_14849642?nclick_check=1

"Rose Covered Glasses" has published many articles since 2006 that are critical of government (most frequently federal government agencies). We have noted the weight government places upon the tax payer and the direction in which they have taken the country in wars, interventions, financial oversight and national debt.

It has been a pleasure to find city, county and state officials concerned, responsible, accountable and energetic in dealing with apparent pollution of valuable waterways. These agencies supported one another, communicated well and worked efficiently to bring about a positive result to a two year investigation. That type of performance is literally unheard of at the federal level.

As a veteran who spent 36 years after Vietnam on federal government weapons systems programs and as a sportsman who values Minnesota waterways, I salute the following individuals and the organizations they represent:

Travis Thiel - Vermillion River Watershed Joint Powers Organization Dakota County Water Resources Department
Thomas M. Montgomery - Public Works Director, City of Hastings
Chelsea Domeier - Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

The above individuals and the agencies for which they work should be applauded for their teamwork, professionalism and interaction with the citizenry. Their organizations should also be models for the federal agencies in becoming lean, unburdened by politics, focused, communicative with each other and accountable for resolving pressing issues in the real world.

WATER QUALITY TEST RESULTS LAKE REBECCA, HASTINGS, MINNESOTA

PLEASE CLICK ON IMAGES OR DOWNLOAD TO ENLARGE

The below report was recently provided by Travis Thiel, Watershed Specialist Vermillion River Watershed Joint Powers Organization, Dakota County Water Resources Department.

Travis is responding to the test conducted on potential water pollution incidents reported at this site. We wish to thank Travis for his investigative and coordinative efforts over the last year on this matter.

Let us hope the wild life and fish pictured here will continue at the lake in health and abundance.

REPORT

"I have received all of the lab results on the sample you were concerned about. I didn’t include the raw data as I felt it would be better understood by everyone involved if I touched on the results versus sending raw lab results out that likely wouldn’t make much sense to most people without guidance and research.

Here’s what I’ve found: Upon my initial review, nitrogen values looked a bit higher than normal with the exception of Ammonia. These nitrate values are higher than what I’ve personally seen in other urban settings from storm water pipes I’ve monitored in the past. After consulting Travis Bistodeau, Water Resource Specialist at the Dakota SWCD, who has extensive experience with monitoring around the County, he indicated that the levels detected were similar to levels he has detected while sampling the Vermillion River near the Falls and other locations upstream in the watershed. This level of nitrate detected was not in exceedance of the drinking water standard. I would expect nitrogen values to be slightly higher as well considering the time of year and use of nitrogen on lawns and fields. The ammonia value detected appeared to be relatively normal. My guess is any elevated nitrogen levels are a reflection of warm season nitrogen application and current background nitrogen levels found in this area of the County.
Metals values detected were less than any toxicity levels stated in the MN ch. 7050 water quality standards.

MBAS (Methylene Blue Activated Substances) is a test for surfactants that the lab ran and helped me interpret the results since I’m not familiar with it. I was hoping this test would address any foaming that was present in the water. The text below indicates the lab’s opinion on what was detected. It appears that a situation like someone washing a car or cars may have contributed to this surfactant level as it does not appear to be a wastewater issue.

From Standard Methods:

"At current detergent and water usage levels the surfactant content of raw domestic wastewater is in the range of about 1 to 20 mg/L. Most domestic wastewater surfactants are dissolved in equilibrium with proportional amounts absorbed on particulates. Primary sludge concentrations range from 1 to 20 mg absorbed anionic surfactant per gram dry weight. In environmental waters the surfactant concentration generally is below 0.1 mg/L except in the vicinity of an outfall or other point source of entry."

Based upon this and the 0.1mg/L in waters, the 0.527 mg/L would seem to indicate a slightly elevated surfactant level. Plus, remember that the sample was already about a week+ old (hold time 48 hours) before it was analyzed.

I hope that provides some clarity about this potential discharge concern. We greatly appreciate having some "eyes and ears" within the watershed to help us potentially locate and fix problems that might exist on the upland areas that drains to our water resources. Please let us know if we can further assist you with this matter and also let us know if other potential concerns arise.

Regards,

Travis Thiel
Watershed Specialist
Vermillion River Watershed Joint Powers Organization
Dakota County Water Resources Department
14955 Galaxie Avenue, Apple Valley, MN 55124
Phone: 952-891-7546 Fax: 952-891-7588
travis.thiel@co.dakota.mn.us
http://www.co.dakota.mn.us"