The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has found mineral oil leaking from a tanker truck spilled into the Floyd River in northwest Iowa.
Tom Roos, with the DNR, says a blue-colored sheen was discovered along a six-mile stretch of the river Monday morning and it was traced to the truck owned by the Farmers Co-op Society in Boyden. Roos says it does not appear to be causing serious problems in the water.
“But, in high enough concentrations, it can deplete oxygen and possibly cause a fish kill,” Roos said. An estimated 1,100 gallons of white mineral oil leaked from the tank over two weeks. The mineral oil is used as a dust suppressant at the co-op.
The DNR collected water samples from the river for testing. There’s no indication of a fish kill in the Floyd River, but Roos said the co-op could still face penalties. “Anytime there’s a pollutant discharged to the water in the state it’s obviously a violation,” Roos said. “Once we get our sample results back, we’ll take that into consideration for any enforcement action.”
The co-op is scraping up contaminated soil and has placed booms and absorbent pads across the river to collect as much remaining oil as possible, according to Roos.
(By Mark Buss, KSOU, Sioux Center)