Workers in Iowa failed to investigate leak that poured manure wastewater into creeks

Workers at a manure digester in northwest Iowa did not act on signs of a potential leak before thousands of gallons of wastewater poured into nearby waterways, according to documents from the state’s environmental regulator.

In early February, a manure digester owned and operated by Colorado-based biofuel company Gevo. Inc. leaked approximately 376,000 gallons of manure water into creeks near Winding Meadow Dairy, roughly 60 miles north of Sioux City. The spill caused E. coli readings to spike in nearby streams and Rock River.

Last week the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) fined Iowa dairy farmer Terry Van Maanen $10,000 for the spill, the maximum amount the department can impose. Gevo Inc. has not been fined for the incident.

Van Maanen owns Winding Meadow Dairy, where the digester is located. At the time of the spill, the digester was operating without permission from the state, due to a lack of construction certifications.

Neither Gevo Inc. nor Van Maanen immediately returned a request for comment.