Vreba-Hoff stormwater, US-127 facility -- ECCSCM chronology and documentation

What's going on? -- 19 months of contamination -- Why no answers, DEQ? after all this time?

In early 2003, millions of gallons of contaminated stormwater accumulated around the largest Vreba-Hoff facility in temporary impoundments. This stormwater was suddenly and illegally discharged through an inline water structure in August, 2003.  But that wasn't the end of it. Week after week since then, for almost a year, stormwater flows from the facility, then stops, starts, stops (unrelated to rainfall).  Water tests for bacteria at US-127 show this stormwater is highly contaminated, not clean rainwater. 

Why can't DEQ test connections? determine the source of this contamination, and -- at long last -- stop the pollution.  Look at what's happening now, the morning to night changes, and the documentation of this problem, going backwards in time from today, July 19, 2004.

Chronology/Documentation:
July 18, 2004 - photos below, left to right
stormwater flowing below the dike 8:42 a.m. Dissolved Oxygen (DO) 4.3 mg/L
stormwater not flowing 2:36 p.m. DO 3.8
 

June 10, 2004 - photos below, left to right
not flowing at 8:35 a.m. DO 0.8 downstream
flowing at 1:48 p.m. (E. coli sample tested Too Numerous To Count)
  

April 25, 2004 - stormwater "running again"
April 21, 2004 - stormwater running before rain

April 16, 2004 -
9:16 a.m. no flow
12:12 pm., flow over rocks

April 10, 2004 -- Easter holiday weekend
"running with a cloudy appearance...no rain since other picture [4-7-04]"


April 7, 2004 - pooled, no flow


February 21, 2004 - cold weather -- stormwater "still has odor"


February 20, 2004 - stormwater is "only site with strong flow"


January 9, 2004 - ice is turning brown, "the temp has not been above 20 degrees for almost a week."


January 1, 2004 - New Year's Day
stormwater E. coli test, Too Numerous To Count, photo close-up of foam on rocks


November 24, 2003 - stormwater, E. coli 5,000/100ml, BOD 153 "strong manure odor"
November 21, 2003 - stormwater, fecal coliform: 1,600/100ml
November 12, 2003 - pumping at stormwater retention pond
September 2, 2003 - stormwater, fecal coliform: 29,000/100ml

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The first 7 months of 2003, Vreba-Hoff facility accumulated millions of gallons of contaminated stormwater behind makeshift dikes.

Vreba-Hoff 2 facility, US-127 south of Hudson, surrounded by contaminated stormwater.
(Aerial photos taken March 27, 2003)


Looking south from Vreba-Hoff, towards Lime Lake


After 1" of rain overnight on May 9, 2003, and rains earlier in the week, the contaminated stormwater illegally impounded at Vreba-Hoff 2 facility overflowed the temporary dikes and discharged to Lime Lake. DEQ inspected the site, but no action was taken, except more dikes.  Beginning the weekend of August 2, 2003, Vreba-Hoff illegally discharged the millions of gallons of contaminated stormwater by opening an in-line water structure during rains.  All the contaminated water flowed into the Bean Creek Watershed.  DEQ reported that the facility wouldl be cited for a discharge violation.

We thought that would be the end of it -- but no [see chronology above], within a month, September, 2003, water tests confirmed ongoing contamination. And it continues to this day -- July 19, 2004.