Thief River Falls (trfnews.i234.me) — Farmers Grain, LLC is a grain elevator in Thief River Falls. The company paid $18,120 in state fines, according to officials.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) states that the company pumped contaminated water from its property. The water entered the City of Thief River Falls stormwater system, the agency said. Officials say that water was later discharged into the Red Lake River.
The agency says the wastewater contained rotting and decomposing grain. It also contained fertilizer, according to the MPCA.
The MPCA says the Red Lake River has failed to meet water quality standards. The agency says extra pollutants can make river problems worse.
The Times contacted Farmers Grain for comment. The company declined to comment, the report said.
What investigators say happened
The MPCA says the pumping occurred in November 2023. The agency says it did not receive notice of the violation until October 2024. After that notice, the MPCA began an enforcement process.
In its notice, the MPCA said the wastewater was pumped into the stormwater system. The agency said that system discharges to the Red Lake River.
Corrective steps in the agreement
Farmers Grain agreed to stop the pumping right away. The company also agreed to provide written submissions to the MPCA.
- Provide a written procedure that explains proper wastewater disposal.
- Submit certification that employees were trained on disposal steps.
- Submit an action plan to reduce contaminated water created on site.
- Submit a timeline for when each corrective step will be finished.
The MPCA said the plan is meant to cut future discharges. The agency said training is required for employees who handle wastewater.
How penalties are set
When setting penalties, the MPCA considers how serious a violation is. It also considers harm that happened or could happen. The agency also reviews past violations.
The MPCA also seeks to recover any economic benefit from late compliance. The agency said this can affect the final penalty.
More stormwater rule information is available from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Minnesota water resource information is available from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
I’m Chris Harper reporting for TRF News.
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And that’s why we barely keep any fish we catch here or swim here 😂
Gross, the river is already nasty 🤮
Gonna cost more than that fine to clean it out
They wont clean it up they’ll just add more chemicals to the drinking water yum yum!
Do better.
Sneaky sneaky 😈
Jaquan Tompson does race really have to be apart of everything like damn
Best part is that the elevator had been pumping water into that Ditch for years.. so it was nothing new