Heavy rainfall causes wastewater runoff; some city wells could be affected

SPENCER — Excessive rains over the last few days are causing wastewater to runoff from some cities and livestock facilities in northwest and north central Iowa.

“So far, cities are able to meet the demand for safe drinking water,” said Ken Hessenius, supervisor of the Spencer field office. “So there is no cause for alarm.”

However, flooding is causing many cities to watch flood water levels and prepare to shut down some of their wells if needed. The city of Sheldon has taken four drinking water wells offline because of flooding, but the city is still able to supply residents with water from the unaffected wells.

The DNR is also receiving reports that cities can’t keep up with the inflow of water into wastewater treatment plants, so the cities are discharging untreated or partially treated wastewater.

A series of livestock facilities with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits have also reported discharges or potential discharges, as allowed under their permits.

“Our northern field offices are assisting the cities in trying to protect drinking water supplies, and providing advice on cleaning and disinfecting wells that become inundated,” said Hessenius.

“We’re also helping feedlot producers, providing advice on how best to handle the discharges,” he said.

“Bottom line, aside from the physical dangers of raging floodwaters, it’s best to keep out of streams right after storms because the heavy rainfall washes all kinds of things off the land, along with diluted wastes from cities and livestock operations that don’t have the storage capacity to handle the rainfall from these massive storms.”

In addition, the DNR says, the recent heavy rainfall has caused major flooding concerns in northern and northwestern Iowa, which has led to closures of some state parks.

The following state parks, trails and campgrounds are currently closed or will be closing as the flood waters are anticipated to rise.

– George Wyth State Park – closing on Friday, June 22, including Brinker Lake
– Wilson Island State Recreation Area – closing Friday, June 22 at noon
Dolliver State Park – closed
– Ledges State Park – Lower Ledges Road and parking lots closed
– Elk Rock State Park – equestrian trail closed
– Brushy Creek State Recreation Area – bike and equestrian trails closed
– Big Creek State Park –Neil Smith Trail closed
vVolga River State Park – equestrian trails closed
– Backbone State Park – closed

As the flood waters recede over the next couple of weeks, DNR staff will work to get the areas cleaned up and restored as quickly as possible for public use. The predicted flooding in some areas will likely cause closures during the popular Fourth of July holiday; therefore, the DNR is processing refunds for campsite reservations and facility rentals (cabins, shelters, day-use lodges) impacted by the closures. Please do not contact the park offices or the DNR call center for refund inquiries. If your reservation is affected you will be contacted directly.

The DNR reminds visitors to avoid floodwaters; do not wade or drive through flooded areas.