DNREC finds high levels of fecal coliform at Sussex plant

Mountaire Farms is facing fines and other sanctions for polluting the groundwater near its Millsboro-area plant at levels several thousand times the legal limit, according to state regulators.

The health risk is so severe that the state is requiring Mountaire to supply bottled water and drinking water treatment to area residents whose wells may be contaminated with fecal coliform and high levels of nitrogen nitrate.

Exposure to high levels of nitrate can lead to decreased blood pressure, cramps, vomiting and even death, while fecal coliform carries pathogens that can cause ear infections, dysentery and typhoid fever, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"This is real scary," said Maria Payan, an organizer with the Socially Responsible Agriculture Project and a frequent critic of how the state regulates the local poultry industry.

"There is no confidence in the wells around that area," she said. "And it doesn't seem like anyone is really trying to check that these systems that are supposed to be in place are really working."

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The pollution could have long-term effects on Swan Creek and Indian River, which border Mountaire's property on Del. 24, just a few miles east of Millsboro.

"The river is already one of the most polluted tidal waters in the state due to excess nutrients from a variety of sources, including wastewater," said Chris Bason, executive director of the Delaware Center for the Inland Bays. "This pollution is only going to contribute to that degradation, not just today but for many years to come."

State officials say the contamination entered the groundwater through a state-permitted spray irrigation system that allows Mountaire Farms to apply wastewater from its processing plant to nearly 930 acres of farmland in the surrounding area, state officials said.

That wastewater, which contains both poultry and human waste, is supposed to be thoroughly treated using a process that involves screens, separation tanks, lagoons and nutrient-eating bacteria.

But a 20-page violation notice issued by the Delaware Department of Natual Resources and Environmental Control this week detailed chronic permit violations and mismanagement that culminated in large amounts of heavily polluted effluent reaching the water table.

"Several employees who were responsible for operating our wastewater system were not doing their job properly and all have been terminated," Mountaire spokesman Sean McKeon said Friday. "What our neighbors need to know is that we are dealing with the problem as straightforwardly as we can and will allocate resources as needed."

DNREC knew the plant was releasing too much pollution as far back as 2015 but continued to work with Mountaire to fix the problem.

The state agency most recently renewed the company's spray irrigation permit on July 31 – even while giving Mountaire 90 days to fix the wastewater issues that have plagued the plant for close to a decade.

Mountaire is appealing that permit, claiming the compliance timeline "is unsupported by facts and inconsistent with the law." The company's attorney also contends new requirements in the permit would expose Mountaire to fines and threaten the plant's reputation.

"The general public would have no understanding that noncompliance is the result of Permit conditions, which no one could satisfy even with the exercise of extraordinary effort," wrote lawyer Elio Battista. "Mountaire's interests are also substantially affected because the Permit places Mountaire in the untenable position of now knowing how to proceed under the Permit."

Battista declined to comment Thursday.

According to the violation notice, the full extent of Mountaire's pollution first came to the attention of state regulators in early September when company officials revealed earlier testing of the wastewater had been limited to one of two holding tanks.

On Sept. 7, Mountaire officials told DNREC that at least some of the wastewater was bypassing a critical step in the treatment process before being applied to farm fields, according to state records.

As a result, that wastewater showed a presence of fecal coliform – bacteria found in human and animal waste – at a level 5,500 times the legal limit.

Even the legally permitted amount is in excess of the limit that triggers beach closures, Bason said.

"Certainly no one should be drinking or swimming in that water," he said. "Especially pregnant women and babies."

Regulators visited Mountaire on Sept. 8 and discovered that the employee who oversaw the land application program had recently left the company, the violation notice states. McKeon said the Mountaire's entire wastewater staff was fired in August.

During their visit, regulators also discovered Mountaire had been applying wastewater to nearby fields without first notifying DNREC, crops on at least one field were not growing properly and company officials were unable to provide basic information about the treatment process, according to the violation notice.

Records later provided by Mountaire showed the total nitrogen sprayed onto nearby field exceed permitted amounts by as much as 4,100 percent, DNREC reported.

The amount of dissolved oxygen and residual chlorine – both key to proper treatment – also were well outside state-required parameters, DNREC officials said.

State regulators ultimately issued 17 citations to Mountaire. A similar violation notice issued by DNREC in 2010 prompted the company to undertake upgrades that brought them into compliance until 2015, state officials said.

The violation notice also means that DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin can levy fines of up to $10,000 a day against the company, although such penalties are rare. In the meantime, Mountaire has been ordered to submit detailed records by Nov. 30 and a plan to correct all of the violations by Dec. 1.

DNREC also has ordered the company to "substantially" reduce the acreage being used for spray irrigation, limit the conditions under which spraying can occur and conduct more frequent sampling and testing of its wastewater, state officials said.

McKeon said Mountaire has replaced its entire wastewater staff and is now beginning work on completely overhauling its wastewater system. The first phase of the nearly $40 million project is expected to be completed by spring.

"I'm reaching out to the neighbors who have contacted us and will be visiting them soon," he said. "I would like to hear what their concerns are and assure them measures are being taken to guarantee something like this won't happen again."

A DNREC spokesman said wastewater samples taken on Oct. 3 showed fecal coliform levels had returned to permitted levels, where they have remained ever since. As of this week, the agency is not aware of anyone coming into contact with Mountaire's wastewater during the stretches when it exceeded state nutrient limits, he said.

The Delaware Office of Drinking Water has collected samples from four wells on four properties near the Mountaire plant with at least four more wells slated for testing in the coming days, agency spokeswoman Andrea Wojcik said.

She said the sampling "did not warrant corrective action" but declined to say where those samples were collected or release any testing results. DNREC also declined to say how many homes are being supplied with bottled water and water treatment. 

Payan and Bason said they believe DNREC shares some of the responsibility for groundwater pollution.

"The company is ultimately responsible, just like every individual, for being sure they are not polluting public resources," Bason said. "But they've been violating drinking water standards since 2000 and if it's gotten worse since then, you have to ask yourself about the role of the regulatory agency and whether it is working."

Area residents concerned about their wells can contact the state Office of Drinking Water at (302) 741-8630.

Contact reporter Scott Goss at (302) 324-2281, sgoss@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @ScottGossDel.